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Here’s what you need to know today

• Reporting season is in full swing in Australia, with some notable results landing on Thursday. Westpac jumped 5.9%, its biggest one-day gain since 2020, after posting a 14% lift in net profit to $1.9bn for the quarter. Telstra slipped 2.6% after delivering results broadly in line with expectations, while Temple & Webster also surged 8.7% after reporting a 21% increase in full-year revenue to $601m. (AFR)
  
  

• The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has lodged legal action against $70bn superannuation giant Mercer Super. ASIC deputy chairwoman Sarah Court said there was “a pattern of longstanding and systemic failure” by Mercer Super to comply with the law. It’s the third major case the regulator has brought against a super fund, following actions against Cbus and AustralianSuper, both of which are defending the claims. (ABC News)

  
  

• Paramount Skydance shares surged 36.7% on Wednesday, after being up as much 60% at one point. This extended Tuesday’s 8.4% gain and prompted “meme stock” comparisons from CNBC’s Jim Cramer. The rally follows the company’s announcement of a $7.7b deal to secure UFC rights from 2026 and comes despite lingering worries about the company’s exposure to declining TV revenues. (MarketWatch)

  
  

• US national debt has reached a record $37 trillion, according to the Treasury Department. To give perspective that is $37,000,000,000,000 when written out in full. The milestone comes less than eight months after passing $36 trillion in November 2024, and just over a year since hitting $35 trillion. Debt held by the public is projected to reach 99% of GDP this year. (Quartz)
  
  

• Nvidia and AMD’s deal to resume AI chip sales to China, in return for giving the US government 15% of related revenue, could be a blueprint for other industries, according to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Calling it a “very unique solution”, Bessent said proceeds would go toward paying down debt, with the potential for taxpayer payments if expanded to other sectors. (Bloomberg)
  
  

• Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has cut $8bn from the value of its investments in the kingdom’s gigaprojects, including flagship development Neom, amid budget overruns and weaker oil prices. The write-downs highlight the challenges of the country’s economic transformation plan, as it looks to modernise and move away from it’s dependence on oil. (Financial Times)
  
  

• Australia and Vanuatu have signed a ten-year, $500m security and economic deal dubbed the Nakamal agreement. Leaders said the pact, which follows months of negotiations, will transform the relationship between the two nations and strengthen Pacific regional ties. (BBC)
  
  

• Commonwealth Bank of Australia has become OpenAI’s strategic banking partner in Australia under a multi-year deal. CBA announced it will work with OpenAI engineers to develop generative AI tools to fight scams, prevent fraud, and improve customer experience. (Capital Brief)
  
  

• Qantas has cancelled flights at twice the rate of Virgin Australia over the past year, according to an ACCC report released Tuesday. Virgin recorded the lowest cancellation rate of any major domestic airline, averaging just 1.6% of flights in the year to June, while the Qantas group cancelled 3.2% - almost one in every 30 scheduled services. The ACCC also called out that airlines have been lifting fares despite falling jet fuel prices putting downward pressure on costs. (The Guardian)
  
  

• Ampol is in advanced talks to buy British fuel station operator EG Group's Australian service station portfolio in a deal that could exceed $1 billion. The move would put Ampol neck-and-neck with Viva Energy as the country’s largest petrol station operators, with about 1,300 sites each. (AFR)
  
  

• Bullish, a cryptocurrency exchange backed by Peter Thiel, surged on it’s IPO on Wednesday, closing up 84% to give it a $13bn market cap. It’s the latest in a number of companies to reach success after an IPO in recent months. AI cloud-computing firm CoreWeave has surged 210% since March, stablecoin issuer Circle has nearly doubled its IPO price since June, and design platform Figma’s shares have grown more than 250% after raising $1.2 billion last month. (Forbes)

What the…?

Police in Thailand have arrested a woman for allegedly having sex with monks and then blackmailing them to cover-up their misdeeds.

The woman was in possession of 80,000 photos and videos allegedly used for blackmail and is thought to have received almost 385 million baht, equivalent to $18.2 million.

The scandal has rocked the country’s revered Buddhist institutions as most Thai monks are sworn to celibacy. The affair has left nine monks disrobed and acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai has ordered authorities to review and consider tightening existing laws related to monks and temples. (ABC News)

Investing is a lifelong journey

Here’s what you can learn today.

India has huge economic growth ahead

This is an extract from the Basis Points podcast episode titled ‘The India opportunity: 10x growth and what comes next - Mugunthan Siva’ (Apple | Spotify | YouTube)

You said the Indian growth story is only halfway done - what makes you so confident in that outlook?

Well, 2047 marks 100 years of independence for India, and there’s a lot of talk about the country aiming to become a developed economy by then. If you look at the numbers, GDP per capita of around US$15,000 is generally considered the threshold for developed status.

To get there, India’s total GDP needs to grow from about US$4 trillion today to US$30 trillion over the next 22 years – that’s a 7.5x increase. While it sounds ambitious, it equates to around 10% nominal growth annually, which I believe is achievable.

That’s what I mean by halfway there. India has already grown from under US$1 trillion to US$4 trillion and is now the fourth-largest economy in the world. The next chapter of the story is about catching up to the US and China.

Want to check out the full episode? All Equity Mates Investing episodes are now released on their own YouTube channel:

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