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🗞️ The fallout
If you've been following the KPMG scandal, yesterday was big.
Pick & Scroll News
June 24, 2026
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Good morning. If you've been following the KPMG scandal, yesterday was big.
Chairman Martin Sheppard, who'd spent months insisting there were only "three instances" of document misuse, has resigned along with two senior audit partners.
The exits come days after an Allens investigation found KPMG partners twice accessed confidential EY and PwC pitch documents submitted to the Lendlease board.
All the headlines and more below...
EL NIÑO IS HERE. AGRICULTURAL EMPLOYMENT IN THE HUNTER VALLEY CRASHED 75% LAST TIME AND TOOK YEARS TO RECOVER
Climate models project a very strong El Niño through late 2026 and into 2027. For eastern and southern Australia, that means hotter and drier conditions. Parts of Victoria, southern NSW and South Australia have had an unusually wet start, which has supported early planting. But northern NSW and southern Queensland are already dry. And farmers are carrying higher fuel and fertiliser costs from war in the Middle East, which means less margin to absorb another production hit.
75% drop in Hunter Valley agricultural employment by 2020 during the last major drought.
The Riverina recovered faster from the 2017-2020 drought than the Hunter Valley did, largely due to better irrigation infrastructure and more diversified production. Drought is also linked to higher suicide rates in affected communities, and mental health pressures tend to show up before economic damage is fully visible.
For consumers, wheat and barley prices are set globally. El Niño typically lowers Australian production, but global wheat prices often fall anyway because the same weather pattern brings favourable conditions to Argentina and parts of the US. Australia exports most of its wheat, so local supply tightens but international prices don't rise to match.
AUSTRALIAN NEWS
NSW cut its growth outlook and downgraded stamp duty forecasts, yet still projects a budget surplus after the 2027 election as transfer revenue falls $5.3B over 4 years. LINK
The Five Eyes security agencies have issued a rare joint warning that rapidly advancing frontier AI models are accelerating cyber threats while also urging governments and businesses to deploy AI to strengthen cyber defences. LINK
The NSW 2026/27 budget has delivered cost-of-living relief including a $50 weekly toll cap, frozen Opal fares and up to $100 off registrations while forecasting a $2.3B deficit. LINK
Transgrid warned data centre operators that Western Sydney’s transmission capacity is becoming constrained as it negotiates 8GW of new connections and has already signed 1.5GW. LINK
The NSW government has unveiled a $561M transport affordability package that cuts car registration fees by $100 for about 4.4 million vehicles and trims motorbike registration by $80. LINK
NSW BETS ON SURPLUS AFTER LOSING $5.3B IN STAMP DUTY
NSW Treasury expects a $1.1B surplus in 2027/28, but only after absorbing a $5.3B fall in stamp duty over 4 years. The hit comes as property transactions collapse following three RBA rate hikes since February that pushed the cash rate to 4.35%.
Stamp duty will fall to $12.6B in 2026/27, down nearly $2B in a single year.
NSW is the most reliant state on property transfer revenue and has the highest average mortgage size per borrower. Rate rises hit harder, disposable income falls faster. Treasury doesn't expect conditions to improve until late 2027. State economic growth will slow to 1% in the new financial year.
The government is banking on private investment in data centres and renewable energy to lift growth back to 2%. Debt will still climb to $219.4B by 2029/30, with interest payments hitting $9B next year as the state refinances at higher rates than it originally borrowed.
The surplus lands the financial year after the March 2027 election.
COMPANY NEWS
Qantas has grounded 1 Airbus A380 for emergency inspections after EU regulators found wing spar cracks, while a London to Perth 787 flight diverted to Karratha for refuelling. LINK
KPMG is facing pressure from a parliamentary committee to publicly release confidential whistleblower investigation documents as chair Martin Sheppard and 2 senior partners resign over misuse of client information. LINK
WiseTech Global has told the ASX it is unaware of any Australian Federal Police investigation into executive chairman Richard White, who emphatically denies human trafficking and related exploitation allegations. LINK
Meta has paused an internal AI training programme that tracked employee mouse movements and digital activity as it investigates data security issues after sensitive data was accessible to all staff. LINK
Shopify has decided to ban all vapes from its e-commerce platform this week after pressure from 25 US state attorneys general targeting illegal e-cigarette sales. LINK
Oracle has cut about 21,000 jobs as its workforce fell 13% to 141,000 in FY26, while severance and exit costs surged to US$1.84B from US$374M. LINK
2026 AUSCORP SALARY SURVEY
Since late 2022, your employer can no longer stop you discussing your pay. But most people still have no idea what the person next to them earns. We're trying to fix that.
This is our biggest survey yet and the more people who contribute, the harder it gets for anyone to be underpaid without knowing it. Anonymous, takes 2 minutes, and the results go straight back to the community.
TOGETHER WITH
Take what you’re doing offline and circle back on team wellness because real team bonding happens with puppies, not PowerPoint. Give your team an event they’ll actually look forward to with Puppy Yoga or Corporate Cuddles!
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