🗞️ Double take

Good morning. It’s Black Friday today—not that you needed reminding, thanks to the continuously expanding week-long campaigns that seem to grow bigger every year.

It’s the perfect Friday to work from home and browse the deals.... a bad day to share a joint account with your partner.

All the headlines and more below...

AUSTRALIAN NEWS

Grand prix has cost Victoria nearly $700 million in the last decade

• The Victorian government's Australian Grand Prix subsidies have reached $700M over 10 years, with this year's event costing $102.3M despite record attendance. LINK

• A coalition of Australian media organisations, including Seven West Media, ABC and SBS, is seeking to collectively negotiate compensation from AI firms for using their content in training large language models. LINK

• Parliamentary inquiry recommends creating an independent Aircraft Noise Ombudsman to manage noise complaints, proposing separation from Airservices Australia. LINK

• Australia's strong labour market is preventing the RBA from cutting interest rates as inflationary pressures remain high due to worker shortages. LINK

• Black Friday shopping events have begun reshaping traditional retail seasons, with promotions starting earlier each year. LINK

GLOBAL NEWS

Australians now have the 'right to disconnect'. In Japan, employees are dying from overwork

• Japan's workplace crisis highlights death by overwork concerns, as a 26-year-old doctor's suicide after 207 hours of overtime contrasts with Australia's new right to disconnect laws. LINK

• Australians visiting the UK will need to obtain a visa from January 8, as Britain implements its universal Electronic Travel Authorisation scheme. LINK

• Global coffee prices have surged to their highest level since 1997, as arabica futures rose 70% and robusta 88% this year due to weather and geopolitical factors affecting major producers like Brazil and Vietnam. LINK

• Wealthy Chinese tycoons are selling their luxury Hong Kong properties at discounts of up to 50% amid the city's unaffordable real estate market. LINK

• India's parliament has been temporarily suspended after opposition lawmakers disrupted proceedings for the third consecutive day, demanding discussion on allegations that the Adani Group paid US$265M in bribes to secure solar power contracts. LINK

COMPANY NEWS

Supply chain disruption caused by Woolworths warehouse strike leading to staff abuse

• Woolworths distribution centre strikes have triggered supply shortages, leading to increased customer abuse towards supermarket staff. LINK

• IAG has agreed to acquire 90% of RACQ's insurance business for $855M, securing a 25-year distribution agreement and access to 1.7 million members in Queensland. LINK

• NAB has averted a court showdown by agreeing to release internal documents over concerns about the bank's financing of coal projects. LINK

• The ACCC has initiated legal action against Webjet for allegedly misleading consumers by advertising flight prices that excluded mandatory fees. LINK

• CBA is utilising AI to handle 15,000 daily payment disputes and plans to continue expanding AI applications across its operations. LINK

• The Guardian Australia has reached a tentative 3-year agreement with staff, offering a 12% pay increase and improved redundancy terms. LINK

• Star Entertainment Group reports continued revenue decline and negative monthly cash flow due to regulatory issues. LINK

• Rio Tinto and other companies are experiencing pushback from male employees regarding gender diversity initiatives. LINK

• The US Federal Trade Commission has launched an extensive antitrust investigation into Microsoft's operations, including cloud computing, software licensing and AI products. LINK

• Microsoft has denied using customer data from its Microsoft 365 applications for AI model training. LINK

• Fisher & Paykel Healthcare has reported a 43% increase in first-half net profit driven by an 18% rise in operating revenue. LINK

• Toyota's global output has declined for the 9th consecutive month in October. LINK

• Amazon has developed a new generative AI model, Olympus, that processes images, videos and text to reduce reliance on Anthropic. LINK

CHART OF THE DAY

The world’s best bars in 2024

ONE MORE SCROLL

Editor’s Pick: Ranked: The countries that believe in aliens the most.

Draft Pick: Brazil breaks eight-year drought to ruin Matildas veteran Clare Polkinghorne's farewell match.

Odd Pick: 'Remove uterus after women turn 30': Japan leader's bizarre population pitch sparks backlash.

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TRIVIA

Thanksgiving

If you are from America you may well have celebrated Thanksgiving last night and this trivia has been made for you! We ask all things Thanksgiving to round off the week:

1. What is the name of the famous department store parade held annually on Thanksgiving Day?

2. Which country other than the United States celebrates Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October?

3. What sporting event is traditionally played on Thanksgiving Day in the United States?

4. What popular dessert is most commonly associated with Thanksgiving?

   
   And for 1,000 points:

5. Approximately how many kilograms of turkey is consumed on average in the United States each Thanksgiving?

Answers below

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ANSWERS

1. Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
2. Canada
3. American football
4. Pumpkin pie
5. Approximately 21 million kgs

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