The federal government yesterday announced a three‑month cut to the fuel excise, halving it from just over 52 cents a litre to about 26 cents, in a bid to take immediate pressure off petrol and diesel prices. The move followed yesterday’s national cabinet meeting as the Middle East conflict pushed oil prices beyond $US115 a barrel and squeezed supply lines. Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the excise cut will cost the budget about $2.55 billion, and the Prime Minister urged service stations to pass the reduction through at the bowser. The cut starts this week and runs for three months. Also, the federal government will reduce the heavy vehicle road user charge to zero, also for three months, to help truckies keep operational.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has called for more certainty from US president Donald Trump on the objectives of the war in the Middle East. The PM said while he had nothing but contempt for the Iranian regime, he wanted to see more certainty around the objectives for the war. And he wants to see a de-escalation.
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor has rejected calls from frontbencher Andrew Hastie for the Coalition to rethink its economic approach, shutting down suggestions the party should consider a windfall profits tax on gas exports and wind back tax concessions for property investors.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has pushed back on talk of changing tax laws for a potential major AI data centre investment, telling Google to deal directly with the Tax Office on how existing rules apply.
Star Entertainment has secured a major debt lifeline, with a new funding package reported at about $550 million from an American private credit player.
An Italian authority is investigating beauty brands Benefit and Sephora after they appeared to adopt what the authority called a "particularly insidious" marketing strategy of using young influencers to market skincare to children.
Fear-o-meter
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese calling for more certainty from US president Donald Trump on the objectives of the war in the Middle East.
“I want to see more certainty in what the objectives of the war are, and I want to see a de-escalation. A de-escalation is in the global economy’s interests.
“I have nothing but contempt for the Iranian regime at the beginning of the conflict, the objectives were outlined as: One, stopping Iran getting a nuclear weapon. Agree, and clearly [that] has been achieved.
“Secondly, degrading the opportunity that Iran has for engaging in military action, either overt or through its proxies in Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis. Clearly, there has been substantial degrading of Iran’s position.
“The third was regime change, and I think that very clearly history tells us that regime change imposed from outside is very difficult. [It] tends to happen from the bottom up within a country, rather than being imposed from outside…
“I would like to see the Iranian regime that I regard as abhorrent and reprehensible replaced and I certainly stand with the Iranian people who’ve been subject to abuse, human rights atrocities and oppression for a long period of time as a whole, but in particular, women and others as well minorities who’ve been persecuted by this abhorrent regime.”
Fear & Greed Q+A today
On oil prices, local energy stocks, and why this oil crisis is going to have a lasting impact:
“Let’s take a best case scenario where everything resolves quickly, flows restart, and we begin moving back to normal.
Even then, you’re looking at around 300 million barrels already lost from the market — and probably another 200 to 300 million barrels before things stabilise.
Then you’ve got damage to infrastructure in places like Qatar, which will take longer to come back online.
So when you add it all up, you’re looking at something like 600 million barrels that have effectively been taken out of the system.
Yes, you’ve had strategic reserves come into the market — around 400 million barrels — plus some Russian and Iranian supply coming back.
But once the war ends, you then have to restock all of that. And that restocking process takes time — so even after things normalise, you’re still dealing with tight supply conditions.”
