🗞️ Up and down

Good morning. Is your office workplace a little boring?

It's probably because you don't have a roller coaster going through it.

At least it would make those people who sit at their desk shouting into a virtual meeting seem rather quiet.

All the headlines and more below...

AUSTRALIAN NEWS

Extend Australia Day to two days?

• A proposal seeks to extend Australia Day to 2 days to recognise Indigenous, colonial and immigrant heritage. LINK

• Fractional property investing is on the rise with the time taken for an average income earner to save a 20% deposit for an average home now more than 10 years, and more than 50% of income will then be required to service the mortgage. LINK

• ASIC has launched a review of private credit markets focusing on fees, trustee independence and transparency. LINK

• Home lot sales in Greater Sydney have dropped 25% as land prices reached $2,011 per square metre. LINK

• The CFMEU's manufacturing division has received approval for a demerger vote, affecting 10,000 workers amid ongoing internal conflicts. LINK 

• Low post-COVID vaccination rates have exposed Australians to overseas influenza risks. LINK

• A new parliamentary committee will investigate university governance failures. LINK

• QLD's state debt will increase by $46B over 3 years due to infrastructure spending. LINK

• Australia has implemented new safeguards as Chinese-manufactured solar inverters pose increasing cybersecurity risks to the power grid. LINK

GLOBAL NEWS

Will anything ever replace our smartphones?

• Global smartphone sales have plateaued as the industry matures towards new innovations. LINK

COMPANY NEWS

Chinese startup DeepSeek creates AI model that rivals OpenAI

• Chinese DeepSeek AI model challenges ChatGPT in computational efficiency. LINK

• Disney's Australian profits fell 22% to $47.2M due to delayed releases and Hollywood strike impacts. LINK

• A whistleblower has accused Mastercard and Visa of failing to prevent payments for child abuse content on OnlyFans. LINK

• OpenAI is being sued by Indian digital news companies Adani and Ambani over ChatGPT's alleged copyright infringement. LINK

• CBA has sold its Chinese regional lender stake for $940M as it exits passive banking investments. LINK

• KMD Brands expects significant earnings decline despite improved Christmas sales from Rip Curl and Kathmandu. LINK 

• ASIC expects to conclude its ANZ trading probe by mid-year regarding federal bond issuance costs. LINK

• Emirates is adding premium economy cabins to Brisbane A380 flights whilst competing with Virgin Australia's Middle East routes. LINK

• Rolls-Royce has secured an $11B contract to build nuclear submarine reactors for the Royal Navy as part of the AUKUS defence pact. LINK

• Rio Tinto has warned of lower Q1 iron ore shipments after Tropical Cyclone Sean damaged a 45 million tonne railcar dumper at East Intercourse Island in WA's Pilbara region. LINK

CHART OF THE DAY

Emerging economies more likely to earn degrees online

ONE MORE SCROLL

Editor’s Pick: How to stop peeing so much if you feel like you constantly have to go.

Draft Pick: The Chiefs will face the Eagles in the Superbowl LIX.

Odd Pick: 'Tiger King' star Joe Exotic claims 8 prison guards beat him up after one tried to force him to give oral s*x in interview with Matt Gaetz.

TOGETHER WITH

TRIVIA

Straya m8

Given we missed Australia Day on Sunday we thought we couldn't miss a chance to do an Australia Day trivia. Good luck.

1. What is the name of the Australian anthem?

2. Who bowled the 'Ball of the Century?

3. Which iconic animal appears on the coat of arms beside the kangaroo?

4. What decade did Australia Day officially become a national public holiday?

5. Who was the first prime minister of Australia?

Answers below

OUR SOCIALS

ANSWERS

1. Advance Australia Fair
2. Shane Warne
3. Emu
4. 1990's (1994)
5. Edmund Barton

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