ABC News (Australia) – Business

ABC News (Australia) – Business

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Australia business and markets (Asia‑Pacific linkages, commodities, FX).

Rebel Wilson's The Deb Is a Delight Despite the Ongoing Legal Drama
NewsApr 15, 2026

Rebel Wilson's The Deb Is a Delight Despite the Ongoing Legal Drama

Rebel Wilson’s long‑awaited directorial debut, the musical comedy *The Deb*, finally opens in Australian cinemas after a protracted legal dispute with the film’s producers. The movie follows a city‑slick private‑school girl and her country‑cousin as they clash over the meaning of...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Hotel Owner Looks to Sue Australia for $11m over Unpaid Refugee Bills
NewsApr 15, 2026

Hotel Owner Looks to Sue Australia for $11m over Unpaid Refugee Bills

A Papua New Guinea hotel, Lodge 10, has filed a civil suit seeking roughly $7 million USD in unpaid accommodation fees for refugees formerly detained on Manus Island. The hotel says payments from the Australian government ceased in 2021 when offshore processing...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Federal Court Allows Appeal by Lesbian Group Seeking to Ban Trans Women
NewsApr 15, 2026

Federal Court Allows Appeal by Lesbian Group Seeking to Ban Trans Women

The Federal Court has allowed the Lesbian Action Group’s appeal to seek an exemption from the Sex Discrimination Act that would let it exclude transgender women from its public events for up to five years. Justice Mark Moshinsky ruled that...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Teen Admits Creating Deepfakes in Australian-First Prosecution
NewsApr 15, 2026

Teen Admits Creating Deepfakes in Australian-First Prosecution

A 19‑year‑old Adelaide teen, William Hamish Yeates, became the first Australian to be prosecuted under the Commonwealth’s 2024 deep‑fake pornography law after pleading guilty to two counts of creating or altering sexual material without consent and two harassment offences. The...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Live: Trump Says Peace Talks Could Restart in Days as Blockade 'Completely' Halts Maritime Iranian Trade
NewsApr 14, 2026

Live: Trump Says Peace Talks Could Restart in Days as Blockade 'Completely' Halts Maritime Iranian Trade

President Donald Trump announced that US‑Iran peace negotiations could restart in Pakistan within days, after a weekend of stalled talks. The US military confirmed its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has completely halted maritime trade in and out of...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Banks Follow the Money to Cut Off Illicit Tobacco After Crackdown Call
NewsApr 13, 2026

Banks Follow the Money to Cut Off Illicit Tobacco After Crackdown Call

Australian regulators have pressed the country’s major banks to clamp down on illicit tobacco financing, prompting a wave of suspicious‑activity reports and customer exits. AUSTRAC logged 337 tobacco‑related SARs using a new reference code and referred 76 cases to law‑enforcement,...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Live: Markets on Edge, Oil Set to Rise on US Gulf Blockade Threats
NewsApr 12, 2026

Live: Markets on Edge, Oil Set to Rise on US Gulf Blockade Threats

Wall Street’s brief relief rally stalled on Friday as US‑Iran peace talks collapsed, leaving the S&P 500 down 0.1%, the Dow down 0.6% and the Nasdaq up 0.4%. European markets outperformed, with the Eurostoxx 600 gaining 0.4% and Japan’s index rising over...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Live: Albanese and Wong to Visit Brunei and Malaysia to Shore up Fuel Supply
NewsApr 12, 2026

Live: Albanese and Wong to Visit Brunei and Malaysia to Shore up Fuel Supply

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong are travelling to Brunei and Malaysia to secure diesel, urea and refined‑fuel supplies as the Middle‑East conflict threatens global energy markets. The trip follows a promise in Singapore to keep trade...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Major Setback for Beekeepers as Varroa Mite Chemical Resistance Detected Again
NewsApr 12, 2026

Major Setback for Beekeepers as Varroa Mite Chemical Resistance Detected Again

Resistance to amitraz, a key varroa mite treatment, has been confirmed across south‑east Queensland and northern New South Wales, alongside existing pyrethroid resistance. The Australian Honey Bee Industry Council says the resistant mites likely represent a new incursion separate from...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
AI Generated the Animation for This TV Show. Is It 'Cool' Or 'Messed Up'?
NewsApr 12, 2026

AI Generated the Animation for This TV Show. Is It 'Cool' Or 'Messed Up'?

Indonesia’s free‑to‑air series Legenda Bertuah has become the country’s first TV show fully animated with generative AI. Each 30‑minute episode, released weekly since January, requires about a month of work by a ten‑person team that includes prompt engineers, scriptwriters and...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
I Thought I Understood China. Then I Ordered a Craft Beer
NewsApr 11, 2026

I Thought I Understood China. Then I Ordered a Craft Beer

China's craft‑beer scene has exploded from a single brewery in 2008 to over 2,000 outlets by 2020, spreading beyond first‑tier metropolises into second‑tier cities like Foshan. The surge is driven by a growing middle class willing to pay five times...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Live: Vance Says No Deal Struck with Iran After 21 Hours of Negotiations
NewsApr 11, 2026

Live: Vance Says No Deal Struck with Iran After 21 Hours of Negotiations

U.S. Vice‑President JD Vance held a brief press conference in Islamabad after a 21‑hour marathon with Iranian officials, announcing that no agreement was reached. The talks focused on Iran’s nuclear program and the strategic Strait of Hormuz, with the U.S....

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
British Child Sex Offender Faces Possible Visa Review After Avoiding Deportation
NewsApr 10, 2026

British Child Sex Offender Faces Possible Visa Review After Avoiding Deportation

An 80‑year‑old British man convicted of sexually abusing a nine‑year‑old was initially barred from staying in Australia, but the Administrative Review Tribunal reinstated his permanent visa on the grounds of ill health and strong ties to the country. The decision...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Small Oil Refinery in Outback Queensland Could Be on Cusp of Expansion
NewsApr 10, 2026

Small Oil Refinery in Outback Queensland Could Be on Cusp of Expansion

Inland Oil Refinery (IOR) in Eromanga, Queensland, has run since 1986 producing up to 1,250 barrels of diesel, solvents and heating oil per day. The Queensland government’s recent approval of the Taroom Trough oil‑and‑gas exploration area could supply additional crude,...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Iran's Grip on Strait of Hormuz 'Not Part of Our Planning', Israel Ambassador Says
NewsApr 10, 2026

Iran's Grip on Strait of Hormuz 'Not Part of Our Planning', Israel Ambassador Says

Israel’s ambassador to Australia, Hillel Newman, admitted that Tehran’s decision to shut the Strait of Hormuz caught Jerusalem off guard. The closure has halted vessel traffic and pushed global oil prices higher, while Iran also fired rockets at Gulf states...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Post-Ceasefire Attacks in Lebanon Spark Fears War Would Get 'Much Worse'
NewsApr 9, 2026

Post-Ceasefire Attacks in Lebanon Spark Fears War Would Get 'Much Worse'

Israel carried out an unprecedented wave of air strikes on Beirut, executing roughly 100 attacks in just ten minutes. The bombardment, which hit areas previously untargeted and without evacuation orders, left at least 250 dead and over 1,000 injured across...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
High Court Refuses to Hear Bruce Lehrmann's Appeal
NewsApr 9, 2026

High Court Refuses to Hear Bruce Lehrmann's Appeal

Australia’s High Court refused former Liberal staffer Bruce Lehrmann’s request to overturn a Federal Court judgment that, on the balance of probabilities, he raped former staffer Brittany Higgins. The Federal Court had already dismissed his appeal and ordered him to pay the...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Is Hormuz Open or Closed? Shiptracking Data Reveals True Picture
NewsApr 9, 2026

Is Hormuz Open or Closed? Shiptracking Data Reveals True Picture

Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains near‑standstill despite Iran’s conditional announcement that safe passage would be possible for two weeks. In the first 24 hours only seven vessels—six bulk carriers and one oil‑chemical tanker—were recorded, with most using Iran’s...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Singapore's PM Knows Australia Is Vulnerable but Albanese Has Leverage
NewsApr 8, 2026

Singapore's PM Knows Australia Is Vulnerable but Albanese Has Leverage

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is traveling to Singapore to secure fuel supplies as the Iran‑Israel war threatens the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil transit route. Singapore provides roughly 55% of Australia’s unleaded petrol and is a major source...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Three-Day Hearing Set for Grace Tame Abuser over Alleged 'Menacing' Social Posts
NewsApr 8, 2026

Three-Day Hearing Set for Grace Tame Abuser over Alleged 'Menacing' Social Posts

A Tasmanian magistrate has scheduled a three‑day special hearing for Nicolaas Ockert Bester, the former teacher who sexually abused 2021 Australian of the Year Grace Tame. Bester was deemed unfit to stand trial in February over three counts of using a...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
'The Whole Industry Will Fall Over': Transport Leaders Call for Urgent Action
NewsApr 8, 2026

'The Whole Industry Will Fall Over': Transport Leaders Call for Urgent Action

Transport workers and employer groups in Australia have warned that soaring fuel prices, driven by the Middle East conflict, have pushed the trucking sector to a crisis point. Drivers say fuel costs have roughly doubled, threatening the viability of small...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Fiji Cruise Ship Runs Aground After Hitting Reef Near 'Cast Away Island'
NewsApr 5, 2026

Fiji Cruise Ship Runs Aground After Hitting Reef Near 'Cast Away Island'

Blue Lagoon Cruises’ 55‑metre vessel Fiji Princess ran aground on a reef off Monuriki Island, the famous “Cast Away” location, during a seven‑day cruise. The Fiji Navy confirmed that all 30 passengers and roughly the same number of crew were safely...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Stagflation Is Already Happening, a Leading Economist Warns
NewsApr 4, 2026

Stagflation Is Already Happening, a Leading Economist Warns

Two veteran Australian economists warn that the country may be entering stagflation as oil prices surge due to the Middle‑East war. Professor Bob Gregory says early signs are already visible – inflation edging higher while unemployment begins to rise –...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Queen at 100 Is Honoured in Fashion Exhibition as Andrew Scandal Bites
NewsApr 4, 2026

Queen at 100 Is Honoured in Fashion Exhibition as Andrew Scandal Bites

The Royal Collection Trust opened the most extensive fashion exhibition ever mounted on Queen Elizabeth II, displaying roughly 200 garments, sketches and personal notes that trace her style across ten decades. Curator Caroline de Guitaut emphasizes the rarity of seeing original designs...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Parents Spend $50k on Overseas Stem Cell Therapy as Experts Issue Warning
NewsApr 3, 2026

Parents Spend $50k on Overseas Stem Cell Therapy as Experts Issue Warning

Australian parents spent roughly US$33,000 on a stem‑cell procedure in Thailand for their five‑year‑old son with septo‑optic dysplasia, a rare eye condition affecting only 54 Australians. After multiple treatments, the child’s visual acuity improved from 1/60 to 3/60, allowing limited...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Live: Israel Intends to Apply Gaza 'Model' In Lebanon
NewsMar 30, 2026

Live: Israel Intends to Apply Gaza 'Model' In Lebanon

Israel’s defence minister announced that the IDF will seize security control of southern Lebanon up to the Litani River, applying the same demolition and displacement tactics used in Gaza. The plan explicitly bars the return of the roughly 600,000 displaced...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
How Australia Is Supporting NASA's First Moon Flight in 50 Years
NewsMar 29, 2026

How Australia Is Supporting NASA's First Moon Flight in 50 Years

Australia will underpin NASA’s Artemis II mission, scheduled for 1 April, by providing critical communications and tracking support. The Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex, managed by CSIRO, will handle roughly 95% of the mission’s data links alongside stations in the United States...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Iran Threatens to Use 'Gate of Tears' If US Deploys Ground Troops
NewsMar 29, 2026

Iran Threatens to Use 'Gate of Tears' If US Deploys Ground Troops

Iran warned it will target the Bab al‑Mandeb Strait—dubbed the "Gate of Tears"—if the United States deploys ground troops, adding a potential second choke point to the Middle‑East conflict. The Iran‑aligned Houthi rebels have already demonstrated the ability to strike...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Darwin's Ambulance Service Fails Overnight as 61 Triple Zero Calls Abandoned
NewsMar 28, 2026

Darwin's Ambulance Service Fails Overnight as 61 Triple Zero Calls Abandoned

St John Ambulance Northern Territory experienced a critical failure overnight, with 61 of 144 Triple‑Zero calls abandoned between midnight and 7 am. Fourteen priority‑one life‑threatening cases missed the 15‑minute response window, and one patient waited over five hours. In Alice Springs, a...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Bank of America Agrees to Pay $105 Million to Settle Epstein-Related Lawsuit
NewsMar 28, 2026

Bank of America Agrees to Pay $105 Million to Settle Epstein-Related Lawsuit

Bank of America agreed to settle a class‑action lawsuit tied to Jeffrey Epstein for roughly $105 million, ending a dispute that accused the lender of ignoring suspicious transactions linked to the financier. The settlement, pending Judge Jed Rakoff's approval, includes a potential...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Oil Price Spikes Are Driving a Surge of Interest in Electric Vehicles
NewsMar 25, 2026

Oil Price Spikes Are Driving a Surge of Interest in Electric Vehicles

The U.S. military strike on Iran triggered a sharp rise in global oil prices, prompting a 278% surge in Australian Google searches for electric vehicles on March 23 versus late February. Historical patterns show that higher fuel costs consistently boost EV...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Rubbish Pile-Ups Weeks Away as Waste Collectors Struggle for Diesel
NewsMar 24, 2026

Rubbish Pile-Ups Weeks Away as Waste Collectors Struggle for Diesel

Waste‑collection firms warn that dwindling diesel supplies could trigger bin service cut‑backs within days to weeks. They have been omitted from the government’s “priority fuel user” list, leaving trucks and processing equipment without fuel. With diesel projected at A$4 per...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
'So Lucky': Burke Warns Failed Perth Bomb Attack Could Have Killed Many
NewsMar 24, 2026

'So Lucky': Burke Warns Failed Perth Bomb Attack Could Have Killed Many

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said Australia was "so lucky" to avoid mass casualties after a homemade pipe bomb failed to explode at an Invasion Day rally in Perth on Jan. 26. The device, packed with ball bearings, could have killed...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
NDIS Participants Work More and Feel Better After Accessing the Scheme
NewsMar 24, 2026

NDIS Participants Work More and Feel Better After Accessing the Scheme

New analysis by the e61 Institute shows that people who join Australia’s National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) work roughly two extra hours per week and earn about $50 USD more each fortnight within four years of entry. Participants also report a...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Farmers Sound Alarm over Imminent Food Price Shocks
NewsMar 23, 2026

Farmers Sound Alarm over Imminent Food Price Shocks

Australia’s National Farmers’ Federation warns that soaring diesel prices, triggered by the US‑Israel war on Iran, will soon push grocery costs higher. Farmers are struggling to secure fuel for operations, while transport firms face mounting freight expenses. The National Road...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Live: Trump Gives Iran a 48-Hour Deadline to Open the Strait of Hormuz
NewsMar 21, 2026

Live: Trump Gives Iran a 48-Hour Deadline to Open the Strait of Hormuz

President Donald Trump issued an ultimatum giving Iran 48 hours to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping. The deadline follows Iran’s closure of the waterway in response to the US‑Israel war on Iran, and Tehran warned it would...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Sending a Ship to Strait of Hormuz Would Test 'Small, Stretched' Australian Navy
NewsMar 19, 2026

Sending a Ship to Strait of Hormuz Would Test 'Small, Stretched' Australian Navy

Australia’s navy, limited to ten surface combatants, faces an aging fleet and modest missile capability, prompting doubts about deploying a warship to the Strait of Hormuz. While technically possible, sending a ship would strain ongoing upgrades and stretch an already...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
A Third of All Victorian Car Thefts Now Involve Key Cloning Devices
NewsMar 16, 2026

A Third of All Victorian Car Thefts Now Involve Key Cloning Devices

Victorian police report that key‑cloning devices now feature in roughly one‑third of all car thefts, accounting for 30‑40% of the 33,000 vehicles stolen in the year to September 2025. The illegal tools, originally sold to mechanics for legitimate diagnostics, are bought...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Rising Oil Price and Inflation Fears Make Rate Hike Likely
NewsMar 15, 2026

Rising Oil Price and Inflation Fears Make Rate Hike Likely

Oil prices have spiked above $100 a barrel as the war in Iran forces the Strait of Hormuz to close, prompting the International Energy Agency to label the disruption the worst in history. Australian economists and the RBA’s futures market...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
'Let's Not Scare South Australians': What the Public Wasn't Told About Toxic Algae
NewsMar 15, 2026

'Let's Not Scare South Australians': What the Public Wasn't Told About Toxic Algae

South Australia’s government waited over four months to revise beach health advice after scientists detected the potent toxin brevetoxin in the state’s massive algal bloom. Early warnings from contaminated oysters, a dead great‑white shark and toxin‑laden kangaroos were downplayed, with...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Free Daytime Power: What the New Offer Means for Australian Households
NewsMar 14, 2026

Free Daytime Power: What the New Offer Means for Australian Households

The Australian Energy Regulator is introducing the Solar Sharer Offer, a free‑power scheme that provides three daytime hours of electricity at no cost to eligible households in Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia starting 1 July. The free window aligns...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business
Foreign Facebook Pages Have Been Promoting One Nation. It Wants Them to Stop
NewsMar 10, 2026

Foreign Facebook Pages Have Been Promoting One Nation. It Wants Them to Stop

ABC News Verify identified a network of at least 20 overseas Facebook pages, largely run from Vietnam, that publish AI‑generated, fabricated stories about Australian politics. The posts combine real and synthetic images, targeting figures such as Pauline Hanson and Senator Payman,...

By ABC News (Australia) – Business