Market snapshot
- ASX 200: -0.5% at 8,707 points
- Australian dollar: -0.03% to 71.35 US cents
- Wall Street: S&P 500 -0.5%, Dow -0.3%, Nasdaq -0.8%
- Europe: Dax -0.5%, FTSE +0.4%, Euro Stoxx 600 -0.5%
- Spot gold: -0.3% $US4,285/ounce
- Oil: Brent Crude flat at $US105.68/barrel
- Iron ore: -0.8% to $US95.75/tonne
- Bitcoin: -1.2% to $US78,162
- 10-year bonds: US 4.98% AU 5.37%
Prices current at around 10:10am AEST
ASX in the red – a breakdown
The ASX 200 has begun Tuesday morning trading in the red, now down -0.6% to 8,699 points.
Of the major sectors, Technology is up the top, with Basic Materials down the bottom.
Of the major stocks, 101 are in the red, 11 are unchanged, and 88 are gaining.
The top mover is Telix Pharmaceuticals Limited, up +7.4%.
The bottom mover is tech company Silex Systems Limited, down -5.1%.
The Aussie dollar is trading above 71 US cents.
ASX falls
The Aussie share market has opened down -0.4% to 8,717 points.
More to come.
Let’s break down the retiree numbers
Following on from the last post about CPI and the impacts on retirees, let’s break down some of the numbers to understand why they are hit hardest.
ASFA says a comfortable retirement for a couple who own their own home now costs $1,513 a week, or $78,998 a year.
For a single homeowner, it costs $1,076 a week, or $56,166 a year.
But the maximum age pension is currently $905 a week for a couple and $600 for a single, andwill rise slightly on September 20.
The full age pension covers about 60% of a comfortable retirement for a couple and about 56% for a single.
“Retirees are among the groups hit hardest by the cost-of-living crisis because their budgets are weighted towards the things going up in price the most,” says ASFA CEO Mary Delahunty.
The age pension is adjusted twice a year in line with what pensioners actually spend, to factor in inflation.
Retirees living a comfortable lifestyle, however, are not. They spend on things the pension does not cover, such as private health cover or a car.
The gap between the age pension and a comfortable retirement is growing, with superannuation filling the gap.
“Super is the buffer between a life in which the bare essentials are covered by the age pension, and feeling comfortable and financially secure in retirement,” says Ms Delahunty.
Retirees’ living costs rising faster than inflation, according to ASFA Retirement Standard
Superannuation peak body ASFA says retirees are being hit harder by rising prices than the general population.
That’s because the costs that dominate their budgets are rising faster than inflation.
While the CPI (which measures household inflation) rose 3.8% in the 12 months to June 2026, the items that make up a large share of retirees’ spending rose much faster:
- Electricity – up 22.4% after the end of the Commonwealth and state rebates
- Maintenance and repair of vehicles – up 6.5%
- Medical and hospital services – up 5%
- Insurance – up 4.9%
- Hairdressing and personal grooming services – up 4.2%
- Dining and takeaway – up 4%
The one relief in consumer spending was petrol and diesel, which fell 7.3% thanks to the temporary fuel excise cut.
The price of Bitcoin
Who remembers when Bitcoin reached its all-time high of $US126,198 in October last year?
This year, the cryptocurrency has been nowhere near that number, hovering around $US78,000 before dropping in June.
August and September have seen it back near that number, currently trading down -0.3% to $US78,828.
Let’s take a look at Bitcoin’s movement over the past six months:
A sea of red for Wall St
Let’s take a closer look at Wall Street, after all major exchanges closed down on Monday afternoon.
The S&P 500 closed down -0.5% to 7,620 points, with only two major sectors finishing in the green.
Of the top movers, CrowdStrike Holdings finished up +13.9%.
Of the bottom movers, Corning Incorporated finished down -13.7%.
Turning to the Dow Jones Industrial Average, it finished down -0.3% to 52,421 points.
Of the top movers, Salesforce, Inc. finished up +4.7%.
Of the bottom movers, Caterpillar Inc finished down -4.2%.
Finally, the Nasdaq Composite finished down -0.8% to 29,127 points.
Of the top movers, CrowdStrike Holdings was once again up top.
Of the bottom movers, Teradyne Inc. was down -13.3%.
Australia needs an AI ‘early warning system’, top cybersecurity chief warns
As international warnings about AI’s power and capabilities grow, Australia’s cyber intelligence chief, Abigail Bradshaw, has weighed in.
She says Australia needs an artificial intelligence “early warning system” and urges organisations to embrace AI for its defensive capabilities.
The ABC’s national AI reporter, Cam Wilson, has this story:
Global AI stocks fall as industry chiefs call for slowing development
AI-linked stocks plunged worldwide on Monday after leaders of the biggest artificial intelligence companies warned of potentially existential risks from the technology, shaking confidence in the industry, whose vast infrastructure spending has driven world stock markets to record highs.
The selloff rippled through the industry, where companies are increasingly relying on debt and circular financing to fund ambitious AI spending plans even as global borrowing costs, reflected in multi-year-high bond yields, continue to rise.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, in a lengthy essay shared on X on Saturday, called on AI companies to slow the rate at which they advance model capabilities amid mounting fears AI could be misused. Both Elon Musk, who runs xAI, and Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, said they agree with Amodei.
Altman also said the company would not proceed with an IPO this year, citing safety concerns.
Wall Street’s major tech index, the Nasdaq, slid -1.2% to a six-week low in early trading as chip stocks, which have led the AI rally, fell the most, although it pared losses in the early afternoon and was last down -0.4%.
“If this does lead to sort of a slowdown and a rethink of AI spending, that will have ramifications for the economy and some important sectors of the stock market, because essentially, we’ve been running hot based on AI spending,” said Steve Sosnick, chief market analyst at Interactive Brokers.
The Philadelphia chip index dropped -5.2%, with Nvidia down -3%, Advanced Micro Devices off -4.5% and Micron falling -5.4%.
Semiconductor equipment makers Lam Research, Applied Materials and tech utility Bloom Energy lost more than -6% each.
Earlier in the day, Europe’s tech sector fell -2.2%, dragged by ASML’s -6% decline, alongside steep losses in Infineon and Siemens Energy, while in Asia, SoftBank plunged more than -10% and chipmakers TSMC and SK Hynix also retreated.
– Reporting by Reuters
There are three main reasons inflation is rising. Higher interest rates won’t fix them
It’s no secret that inflation is still too high. The RBA reiterates this every six weeks when it meets to discuss whether to hike interest rates again, sending homeowners into an understandable panic.
Some of the main drivers of high inflation are supply issues driven by geopolitical tensions, including fuel costs, and American tech giants spending heavily on AI.
An interest rate hike won’t bring these costs down, but it’s how the RBA continues to try to curb inflation. We’ve already seen three hikes this year, and economists expect another later this month.
Business editor Michael Janda gets into this sticky point in his analysis this morning, comparing it to an ancient health practice.
ICYMI: Monday Finance with Alan Kohler
Need a quick refresher on yesterday’s finance headlines?
Alan Kohler talks about what happened to Brent crude as it once again passed a significant milestone.
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ASX to open in the red
Good morning everyone, and happy Tuesday.
Business reporter Adelaide Miller here to guide you through the morning on the markets blog, where we cover the latest business, finance and economics news from across the globe.
To start with, the ASX is set to open lower later this morning, with ASX 200 Futures pointing down -0.2% to 8,731 points.
That’s following a sea of red across Wall Street at the close (I’ll provide a breakdown shortly).
The Aussie dollar is currently trading above 71 US cents.
But for now, grab yourself a coffee and see you back here soon!
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Market snapshot
- ASX 200 Futures: -0.2% at 8,731 points
- Australian dollar: -0.04% to 71.34 US cents
- Wall Street: S&P 500 -0.5%, Dow -0.3%, Nasdaq -0.8%
- Europe: Dax -0.5%, FTSE +0.4%, Euro Stoxx 600 -0.5%
- Spot gold: -1.1% $US4,298/ounce
- Oil: Brent Crude +1.5% to $US106.21/barrel
- Iron ore: -0.8% to $US95.75/tonne
- Bitcoin: -0.3% to $US78,828
- 10-year bonds: US 5.00% AU 5.37%
Prices current at around 7:10am AEST
