🗞️ The Smurf Olympics

Good morning. The Olympics are well underway with Australia making an impressive start over the first weekend of competition. A few of the Paris non-sporting headlines for you:

• Train lines were hit by arson attacks before the opening ceremony.

• A range of torchbearers from Zidane to Snoop Dog carried the flame. Luckily, Snoop did not drop it.

• There were some 'interesting' scenes which included the singer Philippe Katerine appearing as a (pretty much) naked Smurf in a fruit bowl.

• Celine Dion serenaded the world with Édith Piaf's "L’Hymne à L’amour" ("Hymn to Love") in an amazing performance to close the ceremony.

• The Canadian Women's football coach was sent home amid the double spying scandal.

All the headlines and more below...

PARIS OLYMPICS 2024

AUSTRALIAN NEWS

Pirate-fuelled shipping crisis forcing costs sky-high

• Australian importers are choosing air transport to avoid weeks-long shipping delays caused by Red Sea conflicts and congestion in Asian ports. LINK

• Food and grocery prices fell in Q2 but potential cost increases from suppliers could lead to a rebound in food inflation this year. LINK

• Federal government laws will give the ACCC stronger powers to block mergers and acquisitions. LINK

• Generous parental leave policies are increasingly being used by employers to attract top talent without raising salaries. LINK

• Construction company failures led to a record 11,049 corporate insolvencies in FY24. LINK

• Australia signed a A$2.2B contract to upgrade its Collins class submarines, securing over 1,100 skilled jobs in WA and SA. LINK

GLOBAL NEWS

Japan’s population falls at a record rate

• Japan’s demographic crisis worsens with a record population decline since data collection began in the 1960s, seeing a drop of 861,000 to 121.6 million of Japanese nationals in 2023. LINK

• Japan's townships are addressing an "over-tourism crisis" caused by a surge in foreign visitors, leading to rising prices and local frustration. LINK

• The US economy grew at a 2.8% annualised rate in Q2. LINK

COMPANY NEWS

Why you can’t order online from Aldi anytime soon

• Aldi has abandoned plans to expand into online shopping, focusing instead on maintaining low costs and growing its market share. LINK

• OpenAI launched SearchGPT, an AI-powered search engine. LINK

• ANZ's superannuation investors are concerned over allegations of trading team misconduct. LINK

• More than 97% of CrowdStrike's Windows sensors are back online after last week’s software update. LINK

• LinkedIn agreed to a US$6.625M settlement in a lawsuit accusing it of overcharging advertisers by inflating video ad view counts. LINK

• Qantas is experiencing strong demand for business class travel from wealthier passengers despite a global downturn in economy airfares. LINK

• Macquarie Capital's first-quarter update indicated a resurgence in dealmaking activity. LINK

• Woolworths has hired Boston Consulting Group to reduce Country Road's costs by up to $25M. LINK

• Apple drops out of the top 5 handset makers in China as iPhone shipments in China fell by 6.7% in Q2 2024 due to increasing competition from rivals like Huawei. LINK

• Apple signed President Biden's voluntary AI commitments, joining 15 other firms ensuring AI's power isn't used destructively. LINK

• 3M saw strong quarterly results, with cost cuts having led the company to raise its full-year profit forecast. LINK

• Google and Meta are among 8 digital tech giants committed to verifying advertisers and screening ads for suspicious scam content. LINK

• Google's AI unit, DeepMind, has demonstrated advances in solving complex mathematical problems with its new AI models. LINK

• Meta is set to receive its first EU antitrust fine for linking its Marketplace service with Facebook. LINK

• YouTube speeds in Russia are set to decline sharply due to Google's failure to upgrade equipment and unblock Russian media channels. LINK

• An Italian unit of Amazon is being investigated for suspected tax evasion. LINK

CHART OF THE DAY

G20 countries agree on the need to tax billionaires, but later, due to implementation hurdles

• The G20 has agreed to collaborate on ensuring effective taxation of the ultra-rich, respecting national tax sovereignty while fostering cooperation on tax avoidance.

• Brazil, leading the G20 this year, proposed a 2% wealth tax on billionaires, which could generate up to $250 billion annually from about 3,000 individuals.

• The richest 1% globally have amassed US$42T in new wealth over the past decade.

TRIVIA

It’s Game Time

Who wants to be a Millionaire is back… Answer the 3 questions below to prove that you’re at least worth $50,000!

For $100: How many continents are there on Earth?
A) 5
B) 6
C) 7
D) 8

For $1,000: What is the chemical symbol for gold?
A) Au
B) Ag
C) Gd
D) Go

For $50,000: The Earth is approximately how many kilometres away from the Sun?
A) 62 million
B) 150 million
C) 311 million
D) 472 million

Answers below - prize money not actually included

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ANSWERS

1. 7
2. Au
3. 150 million