The economy added 40,300 jobs last month, and the unemployment rate fell to 4.4 per cent, from 4.5 per cent. The ABS labour force data came as new figures show that household spending jumped more than expected in May.

Along with the rise in underlying inflation revealed on Wednesday, it all suggests the economy might be travelling better than many of us feel, and that could mean higher interest rates.

Taking employment first, the economy added around 5,000 full time and 35,000 part time jobs last month. It was more than forecast, and a reversal of the figures from April.

Household spending rose 1.3 per cent last month, also reversing a decline in April. The result was much stronger than expected and was driven by consumer spending on hotels, cafes, restaurants and clothing.

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Greed-o-meter

Want to make a fortune out of online content? Better start a YouTube channel. The Forbes Top Creators list for 2026 reveals YouTube is home to the highest-earning creators by far. Jimmy Donaldson (aka MrBeast) comes in on top, with $US300 million in gross earnings last year, having spun out his YouTube channel into an Amazon TV series, as well as food, toys and clothes.

Fear & Greed Q+A today

On how AI is shaping the intersection between creativity, marketing and productivity:

 

“At the core of everything we do, it's in service of human beings. I think that's where a lot of the AI discussion forgets the point. It's there to make human beings' lives better.

 

We're trending towards a point where companies can start to think about personalising to an audience of one. A company can know enough about you, if you choose to trust them with that information, to make sure the content delivered to you is actually personalised to your level.

 

But the next five to ten years is really about understanding when AI feels right. How do we understand when it respects us?

 

The last thing you want is someone receiving a piece of content and thinking: I kind of get it, but it doesn't feel right. It doesn't respect me, or it doesn't respect the brand that I've trusted.”

 

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News in brief

Brent crude has fallen back to its pre-war level, dropping to about $US72.50 a barrel, as flows through the Strait of Hormuz ramp up following progress on a US-Iran peace deal.

There has been another last-minute change to the government’s CGT and negative gearing legislation, with Labor amending the bill so the death of a homeowner, or divorce, doesn’t mean people will lose grandfathering exemptions. The legislation passed parliament yesterday.

Judo Bank’s share price tumbled nearly 40 per cent yesterday, after the small business lending bank revealed worse than expected credit losses, several troublesome loans, and lower earnings for the current financial year.

Back-to-back earthquakes, less than one minute apart, in Venezuela have killed possibly thousands with buildings across the country’s capital Caracas being destroyed.

Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has lost his trillionaire status, less than two weeks after becoming the first person to achieve it following SpaceX's public debut.

Fear-o-meter

The hydration breaks at this year’s World Cup – one each half – are not popular at stadiums or among TV viewers. But US broadcaster Fox is likely making hundreds of millions of dollars from TV commercials shown during the three-minute hydration breaks, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

These breaks could enable Fox to make back what it paid FIFA to be the tournament’s US broadcaster. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fox could make at least $US250 million, but possibly as much as $US500–$US600 million, from water break ads placed by companies like Nike, Adidas, and Coca-Cola.

The English-language US rights for the entire tournament reportedly cost Fox between $US400–$US500 million.

Amid rising global temperatures, FIFA made water breaks mandatory for the 2026 World Cup for the first time ever, even at climate-controlled arenas, which some coaches have criticised as unnecessary.

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