Good afternoon. Inflation is falling faster than predicted, with the latest figures showing the consumer price index at 4.3% in November – down from 4.9% in October and less than the 4.4% predicted by economists.
Housing costs, however, continued to rise, up 6.6% from a year ago, while food and non-alcoholic beverages rose 4.6%, and insurance and financial services were 8.8% more expensive. The result reinforces expectations the Reserve Bank’s key interest rate has peaked.
Top news
Israel and Hezbollah edge closer to war | Hezbollah announced it had launched “a number of explosive attack drones” at the Israeli northern military command base in Safed, the first time it has targeted the site. The Lebanese militant group declared the attack as part of its response to recent high-level Israeli assassinations in Lebanon. Shortly afterwards, Israel killed four more Hezbollah members, including one at the funeral of a senior commander in the group’s elite Radwan force, who had been killed the day before.
Dutton parties with mining billionaires | Peter Dutton was flown to a party at the Pilbara mine of Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, by another billionaire rich-lister. In a speech at the Roy Hill event in November last year, Dutton repeatedly thanked those working in resources. He described the work carried out at Hancock Prospecting’s mine as a “national treasure”.
Police on alert for potential violence at Eritrean festival in Melbourne | Supporters of the African nation’s dictatorial regime have clashed with opponents in the diaspora at similar events in other countries. Australian federal police and government officials have met representatives of the Eritrean community in a bid to avoid potential violence during a planned cultural festival in Melbourne’s western suburbs this weekend.
Brisbane letter campaign ceases emergency accommodation in affluent suburb | A hotel manager will no longer accept people seeking emergency accommodation after a resident of an affluent Brisbane suburb urged the community to restore the “safe and quiet neighbourhood” in a letterboxing campaign. The manager of the hotel in Hamilton, where the median house price is $1.9m, said about seven families, including at least 13 children, stayed there before the new year period.
Australians with disability paid lower super rate | Under the supported employment services award 2020, employees with disability working in supported employment are entitled to only 9.5%, or $15 a week, whichever is greater. That falls short of the 11% guaranteed by the federal government in other employment. Advocates say there is “no excuse” for the inequity.
Sperm whales share similarities with human behaviour | Much like humans, sperm whales live in clans with distinctive cultures, a study has found. While underlining how different whales were from humans, the paper suggested intriguing correspondences. Sperm whale society appeared to use consensus, rather than top-down leadership, to reach communal decisions.
Meta sued for allegedly running content sexualising minors next to ads | Facebook and Instagram have been profiting from placing corporate adverts from companies such as Walmart and Match Group next to content potentially promoting child sexual exploitation, a legal filing in the US alleges.
Poland police arrest fugitive MPs as tensions rise | Polish police have arrested two politicians convicted of abuse of power who had taken refuge for hours in the palace of the president, Andrzej Duda. The development is the latest in the escalating dispute between the new government, led by the prime minister, Donald Tusk, and the conservative Law and Justice party that governed Poland for eight years until last month after its defeat in a general election in October. Duda is closely aligned with Law and Justice and is making it clear that he will oppose Tusk’s agenda.
What they said …
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“What we want to make sure is that when the big supermarket chains get goods cheaper off our farmers, then those costs are relayed on to consumers.” – Anthony Albanese
As we reported this morning, the government is considering a mandatory code of conduct for supermarkets, which have faced heavy scrutiny over higher prices. The Greens senator Nick McKim said the review was “a step in the right direction”.
In numbers
Before bed read
Magnesium is the latest buzzy supplement, but can it help with anxiety?
“For most people magnesium is relatively harmless to try, but mental distress is complex and usually results from a number of different factors. Staking too much on a single supplement’s outcome could lead you to feel even worse if it doesn’t dramatically change your life.”
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: HEAR. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
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