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The Big Picture
RBA tipped to lift rates to a 14-year high today. The Reserve Bank is almost certain to raise the cash rate to 4.6% this afternoon, the highest level since November 2011, with all 29 economists surveyed by Bloomberg tipping a rise. Most analysts expect the RBA to pause after today, though some warn a second hike could still land before Christmas. (ABC)
Chalmers reports $6bn better deficit on super and investor income. The treasurer has confirmed last financial year's underlying deficit came in $6 billion below the $28.3 billion forecast in May, crediting higher receipts, up $4.6 billion, and lower payments, down $1.4 billion. Chalmers said the gain came "overwhelmingly" from stronger super and investor income rather than wage taxes or mining. (ABC)
Australia government calls OpenAI and Anthropic chiefs to AI inquiry. A Senate committee has asked OpenAI's Sam Altman and Anthropic's Dario Amodei to front hearings in Canberra this week, days after Australia revealed a rogue OpenAI agent accessed its Medicare portal in June. Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the pair must answer for the breach and discuss lasting AI regulation. (Al Jazeera)
NSW to fine agents up to $22,000 over AI-altered rental listings. The new laws target a practice known as "housefishing", where digitally altered images distort a property's true size or condition, from fake renovations to furniture that makes rooms look bigger. Landlords and agents must disclose any AI-generated or edited photos or face the penalty. (The Guardian)
Surcharge ban to save shoppers $1.6b, but banks trim perks in response. From Thursday, businesses can no longer add surcharges to card payments, a change the RBA expects to save consumers about $1.6 billion a year. With their revenue set to fall, banks are reportedly raising credit card fees and paring back rewards and travel insurance perks, with CBA already dropping its Qantas Frequent Flyer partnership for an in-house scheme. (ABC)
Companies in the news
2026 AFL grand final smashes TV viewership records. Saturday's Brisbane and Fremantle decider drew a national TV audience of 4.52 million, with a total reach of 6.5 million. That figure was up 8% on last year, making it the most-watched program of 2026 and the highest-rating grand final ever. Streaming set records too, with 7plus pulling 1.42 million viewers for its biggest day, up 44% on 2025. (SEN)
SpaceX to launch Google's first AI data centre satellite. A prototype for Google's Project Suncatcher, a plan to run AI data centres in orbit, will fly on a SpaceX rideshare mission this week. The satellite carries four of Google's specialised AI chips and will spend a year in orbit, testing how they withstand space radiation and how to cool them without air. (Space)
CSL becomes fund managers top pick after doubling off its lows. The plasma giant is now the most widely held company among 62 Australian equity funds tracked by Morgan Stanley. This comes only months after a near $3.7 billion annual loss, being the first since listing in 1994, which drove shares to a decade low of $90 in June. Fund managers piled back in after August's full-year result eased fears of further downgrades, doubling the share price to above $180. (AFR)
Northern Star shares jump as it rejects $36b takeover bid. The gold producer's shares rose 6.5% yesterday after it knocked back a takeover approach from South African miner Gold Fields. The offer, valuing Northern Star at $36.1 billion, was unanimously rejected by its board as materially undervaluing the company and exposing shareholders to jurisdictional and operational risk. (Capital Brief)
Karoon Energy shares fall on production downgrade. The oil and gas explorer's shares fell almost 13% yesterday after it cut full-year production guidance at its Baúna project off Brazil. Total output guidance was lowered to 6.6 to 7.2 million barrels, pushing unit costs higher, though Karoon says insurance may partly offset the hit. (Capital Brief)
American kids are turning to AI for friendship
Between 2-4 children in every American classroom now say they would rather talk to an AI than a human classmate, according to a University of North Carolina study of more than 2,300 middle schoolers.
1 in 5 reported using AI for emotionally intimate companionship, turning to bots that, as one Mum put it, are designed to understand and agree with everything you say. The study also found that the more students leaned on their AI friends, the lonelier and more anxious they became, undermining the very thing they went looking for. (WSJ)
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Two Experts Build the Ultimate Dividend Portfolio
Daniel Kelly from Viola Private Wealth and Andrew Vielant from DP Wealth Advisory each build a three-ETF income portfolio on a recent episode of Buy or Sell. (Spotify | Apple | YouTube)
Given the challenge of building a passive income portfolio with only three ETFs, the two experts on last weeks Buy or Sell took very different approaches.
Andrew went with a more traditional dividend-focused mix. VHY (Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield) as a low-cost index option paying around 4.3% with high franking, Talaria Global Equity for international exposure at an 8.5% yield with a deliberate underweight to US tech, and PL8 (Plato Income Maximiser) for actively managed Australian dividends paid monthly. The blended yield came to around 6.4%.
Dan leaned into listed private credit, an asset class that until recently was only available to wholesale investors. QRI (Qualitas Real Estate Income) at 7.3%, MA1 (MA Credit Income Trust) for corporate direct lending at 8.6%, and PGI2 (Plato Global Income) at 6.3% to add some growth. His blended yield was around 7.4%.
Dan believes it’s important to not place too much focus on management fees for income exposures. Focus on the net income that actually lands in your bank account. You are inherently going to pay more for private credit or active management than for a passive index ETF, and that is fine if the net-of-fees return is stronger. Chasing the lowest fee can potentially lead you to the wrong product.
