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5 Things you need to know today

Switzer Daily
11 August 2022

1. Inflation down, US stocks up
Great news for stocks with the US inflation number coming in better than expected and share prices surged higher. In simple terms, lower inflation for the US means fewer interest rate rises are needed. This reduces the chances of a serious recession, job losses and lower profits for companies. Inflation in the U.S. was 9.1% and now has fallen to 8.5%, and August should bring an even lower number. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was up over 2% on the news with the likes of Facebook’s parent, Meta, rising over 5%.

2. Impact of lower US inflation on us
What does lower US inflation mean for the local stock market and local interest rates? The stock market futures predict our market will open up 60 points higher, but it could rise even more over the course of the day, with tech stocks expected to spike higher. For those with loans, worried about too many interest rate rises, fewer increases in the US takes the pressure off our central bank to raise rates. We’ll still see some more rate hikes but this US inflation figure might reduce the number and the size of future interest rate rises.

3. Dutton says jobs market is a stunt
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton won’t go to the Federal Government’s Jobs Summit, which he has called a “stunt.” The Summit will happen on September 1 and 2 and will see unions meet employer groups, and the Nationals will attend to represent rural interests. The goal is to build a bigger, better-trained and more productive workforce to boost incomes and living standards. Ahead of the Summit, the ACTU is calling for the Government to stop the RBA using interest rates to lower inflation, which will never happen.

4. Alan Joyce’s home gets egged
New frustration around Qantas Airways and its numerous staff shortages and flight delays have come in the form off egg and toilet paper being thrown at chief executive Alan Joyce’s $19 million harbourside home in Sydney’s suburb of Mosman.

“The reputational damage is enormous,” said Natalie McKenna, a lecturer in strategic communication at La Trobe University in Melbourne. “Many Australians are of the opinion that Alan Joyce should move on.”

“Qantas survived the pandemic thanks in part to the elimination of more than 8000 jobs and a multibillion-dollar cost-slashing program. Those cuts provide ammunition to critics who say Mr Joyce has gutted Qantas so comprehensively it cannot function now that demand has returned,” the AFR reports.

5. New study finds staff more likely to quit if asked to come into the office full-time
In a post-pandemic era that has re-written the script on the expectations between employees and their bosses, a new global study has found that those required to come into the office full-time are twice as likely to quit their job than workers with a hybrid arrangement.

“While 9 per cent of workers with complete freedom about where they worked were actively thinking about quitting their job, as many as 19 per cent of those required in the office full-time said the same thing, according to design firm Hassell’s global survey of 2500 office workers,” the AFR reports.

“It’s unusual to see such a strong relationship. Often when you do this kind of survey, you could be up one or two percentage [point]s, but [to be up] something like twice, it’s a pretty strong relationship,” said Hassell workplace researcher Daniel Davis.

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