Today’s News

The Big Picture

• Oil breaks above $90 a barrel. Before the US and Israel attacked Iran a barrel of Brent Crude - the global oil price - was in the low $70’s. A week later, it broke above $90 for the first time since April 2024. Most concerning is that many Arab states have flagged they may not be able to keep shipping and would have to call “force majeure” on existing contracts. Such a situation has analysts predicting $150 a barrel. (The Guardian)
  
  

• US lifts some sanctions on Russian oil. To put some downward pressure on oil prices, the US has issued a 30-day sanctions waiver for Russian oil bound for India. It also waived sanctions on the German subsidiary of Russian oil giant Rosneft. (Reuters)

  
  

• US unemployment spikes. Unexpectedly, the US economy lost 92,000 jobs in February. It was the third time in 5 months that the US economy lost jobs and the unemployment rate rose from 4.3% to 4.4%. A weakening economy and higher unemployment combined with persistently high inflation thanks to oil prices and tariffs is a nightmare scenario for the US economy and raises fear of stagflation. (CNBC)
  
  

• India and Indonesia follow Australia’s social media ban. First it was the European countries, now major Asian countries are following Australia’s social media ban for under 16’s. On Friday, Indonesia and Karnataka - the Indian state that is home to India’s tech sector - both announced the bans. Reports suggest India’s national government is considering a similar restriction. (FT)

Companies in the news

• Australia’s gambling companies take the piss. While not a technical term, that is the only way to describe the latest findings from a report tabled in Federal Parliament. Australians continue to be enticed with special promotions after signing up to the National Self-Exclusion Register. One example included in the report explained how betting companies contacted people who had self-excluded on their birthdays to offer special “birthday offers”. (Capital Brief)
  
  

• Microsoft, Amazon and Google back Anthropic. Despite the US Department of Defence labelling Anthropic, the owner of AI chatbot Claude, a “supply-chain risk”, the three tech giants will continue to offer Claude to clients. Normally, a “supply-chain risk” designation means any company that works with the DoD must stop working with the designated company, potentially setting up a show-down between these tech giants and the US government.  (TechCrunch)
  
  

• Novo Nordisk picks its battles. The Ozempic-maker has ended its legal battle with telehealth platform Hims & Hers Health with an agreement to sell its weight-loss drugs on the telehealth platform. Hims share price jumped 40% in after-hours trading. Novo’s decision appears to be an acknowledgement it needs to work with as many distribution channels as possible as it races to catch up to the market leader Eli Lilly. (Bloomberg)
  
  

• Google boss could make $692 million in 3 years. Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Alphabet since 2015, had his pay package increased to $692 million over the next 3 years. To fully realise all of this pay, Alphabet must hit a number of targets, including large growth in its Waymo self-driving car and Wing drone delivery projects. Since Pichai took over in 2015, Alphabet has grown sevenfold from $500 billion to $3.5 trillion.  (FT)
  
  

• Oracle the latest to announce AI-related job cuts. The American software giant announced it would be cutting thousands of jobs that it deems less necessary due to accelerating AI adoption. However, many suggest that Oracle is actually looking for savings as it faces mounting costs from a massive expansion of its AI data centre infrastructure.  (Capital Brief)
  
  

• BlackRock limits private credit withdrawals. The world’s largest asset manager capped withdrawals from its $26 billion HPS Corporate Lending Fund after investors put in redemption requests worth 9.3% of the fund’s value. The fund has a maximum withdrawal limit of 5%. Such a flurry of withdrawal requests added to investor fears about private credit and BlackRock shares dropped 7%. (WSJ)

What the…?

Aspiring dessert chefs, beware. A Brisbane mom was threatened with fines or prosecution after her child’s cupcake stand was reported to Queensland Health for operating without a food business license.

Kelly Stothard was proud of her child’s initiative to get off the iPad and exercise his entrepreneurial spirit, but a letter from the council put a damper on the excitement. Brisbane Lord Mayer Adrian Schrinner said the council would not further investigate the complaint, saying “c’mon, let’s not complain about kids selling cupcakes.” (ABC)

A message from Schroders

Expanding globally is not just about hiring fast. It is about choosing the right structure. Get the latest global equity insights from Schroder’s worldwide team of portfolio managers and analysts at www.schroders.com.au/insights. You can also find information on investing in the Schroder Global Equity Alpha Fund (ASX:ALPH) on the site, and revisit out interview with Portfolio Manager Frank Thormann from 21st November 2025.

Today’s Insight

Applying long-term thinking to investing

We asked financial adviser Alex Thompson about the practical application of investing with a long-term perspective.

What does “long-term thinking” actually look like in practice?

Alex: Long-term thinking in practice is really, really boring. It’s years of just getting the simple bits right & doing them over and over again.

Patience is an actual skill. It’s what allows sensible compounding to occur, rather than chasing the high‑velocity, day‑trading narratives you see on TikTok or Instagram. At a practical level, it is first seeking clarity by establishing what you want to get out of investing.

It’s important to remember that building an investment portfolio is simply a means to an end. What you are ultimately trying to do with the money is what will drive the outcome, is the goal to build a portfolio of assets that can generate reliable passive income? Is it to fund a future lifestyle, provide a house deposit for your children, or create optionality later in life? Once you have clarity around the outcome, you can then work backwards to build a plan to help get you there.

Ready to figure out your financial plan for the long term? Fill out the form on our website and we’ll match you with one of our hand-picked advisers.

Today in Equity Mates