TL;DR
- Australia added 76,800 jobs in June, more than four times forecasts, reviving bets on a fourth RBA rate rise as soon as August.
- Investigators allege organised crime inflated Victoria's Big Build infrastructure costs by up to $15 billion, fuelling demands for a royal commission.
- The federal government is expanding $338-a-week 'prac payments' to students doing unpaid mandatory placements in nursing, teaching and social work.
Politics and policy
Even a stalled escalator could not dent Anthony Albanese's command of his party. As Labor wrapped its three-yearly national conference in Adelaide, the prime minister's tight grip was on full display, with the floor tightly managed and dissent contained rather than aired out. (via SBS News)
Nowhere was that control clearer than on Gaza. Delegates pushing to harden Labor's stance on Israel's war were effectively boxed in, with the leadership throwing a blanket over the dissent to avoid an ugly floor fight, The Conversation's Michelle Grattan writes. (via The Conversation)
Student nurses and teachers are about to get paid for placements they once did for free. The government is expanding its 'prac payment,' worth about $338 a week, to more students grinding through the mandatory unpaid work placements built into their degrees. (via SBS News)
Business and economy
The jobs market just refused to cool, and that spells trouble for borrowers. Employment jumped by 76,800 in June, more than four times the 15,000 economists tipped, while unemployment held steady at 4.4 percent. Markets now put the odds of a fourth RBA rate rise in August near 36 percent. (via Kalkine)
The Australian dollar is riding the rate-hike buzz higher. The Aussie pushed toward US$0.70 as traders bet the Reserve Bank, chasing inflation still above its 2 to 3 percent target band, will keep tightening. June-quarter inflation figures due next week are the next big test. (via Tradingpedia)
Technology and industry
Canberra is ripping out ageing software before it dies. The Department of Infrastructure has signed a $38.8 million, three-year deal with consultancy Accenture to replace its legacy SAP finance system, which reaches end-of-life in 2027, with cloud platforms Workday and ServiceNow. (via ITnews)
Imagine opening your cloud bill and seeing trillions of dollars. That is what jolted Amazon Web Services customers, including Australians, on July 17, when a pricing bug in the billing engine spat out wildly inflated estimates. AWS says the figures do not reflect real charges. (via ITnews)
Society
Organised crime may have quietly taxed Victoria's biggest construction boom. Investigators allege bikie gangs and crime figures infiltrated the state's Big Build through the CFMEU construction union, inflating costs by as much as $15 billion. Integrity experts say only a royal commission can reveal the true scale. (via The Conversation)
Love is on hold for the price of a small car. Australians with overseas partners face an $11,710 partner visa fee and years-long waits, leaving couples stuck apart while the paperwork crawls. (via SBS News)
Getting an ADHD diagnosis has never been easier, or more lopsided. Telehealth clinics are driving a surge in ADHD prescriptions, but researchers warn the fee-heavy model favours patients who can afford to pay, widening the gap in who actually gets treated. (via The Conversation)