It's Friday the 8th of August 2025. Prime Minister AnthonyAlbanese has defended criticism of Victorian Premier JacintaAllan’s push to legislate work from home, labelling the stance “consistent” with the views of the federal government. Meanwhile, a report has revealed incidents of parliamentary staff being spat at, physically abused and working large amounts of overtime.
The corporate regulator is in the final stages of considering an application to approve an alternative listing market to rival the ASX, just 24 hours after the market operator confused two companies, sending one’s share price tumbling.
The federal government has taken a $50 million stake in lithium producer LiontownResources, wanting to support the critical minerals company amid the commodities downturn.
It’s been heralded as the largest freestanding beauty store in the world, and it’s opening today in Melbourne. Aussie beauty giant Mecca’s three-storey Bourke Street store is set over 4,000 square metres – that’s the equivalent of around 20 tennis courts.
A YouTuber has literally struck gold – and a potential $40,000 payday – while prospecting in WA’s Goldfields. Kevin Richardson was making a tutorial video for his YouTube channel with his wife when he unearthed the 7-ounce nugget.
The US Tennis Open is just over a fortnight away and it is set to offer a record $US90 million in prize money across all competitions, the largest purse in tennis history. Total prize money has increased 20 per cent from last year.
Fear-o-meter
The federal government’s decision to take a $50 million stake in lithium producer Liontown Resources sets a dangerous precedent.
Liontown will undertake a $266 million capital raising to shore up its balance sheet, of which $50 million has already been bankrolled by the federal government’s $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund Corporation.
Investors are wondering aloud whether the Fund could take equity stakes or controlling interests in troubled metal smelters.
The future of about a dozen smelters and refineries – covering aluminium, lead, copper and manganese – is in doubt, with some already having closed their doors due to higher power prices and trade distortions caused by Chinese competitors.
The government isn’t promising to do any more investing. But investors argue it should help out troubled sectors. The Liontown decision, if repeated, could become a slippery slope.
Fear & Greed Q+A today
The US is imposing tariffs, and our economy is so slow that the RBA is expected to slash rates - but the ASX is setting new records. Why?
"The market trades on expectations of profits. We are in a slowdown at the moment. We have tariff issues, geopolitical issues, but the fact that we think interest rates are going to fall encourages investors because they think, well, stocks like JB Hi-Fi, people will spend more with lower interest rates...
I use that deliberately. Harvey Norman, I could have used as well, because [those stocks are] actually doing really well at the moment on the expectations that lower interest rate cuts means people will go out and buy a computer or a phone or replace the stuff that they bought in COVID with their money. And they'll go out and spend more money replacing that sort of stuff. So it's about future earnings is the short answer."
The upcoming US Open has set a record for the largest purse in tennis history - a whopping total of $US90 million in prize money. The winner of the men's and women's singles will each take home $US5 million - that's up from $US3.6 million last year, and is around twice what the winners of the Australian Open took home this year.
