Here is a look at what is making news around the country today.
Today’s national news includes Western Australia overturning its 2021 Aboriginal cultural heritage protection laws, Australia’s consumer sentiment drops due to bleak economic outlook, Singapore Airlines ramping up its flights into Australia to meet booming demand, and Australian Cotton industry groups getting $890,000 funding to boost exports.
Politics
2021 Aboriginal heritage protection laws to be scrapped
Western Australia will overturn its 2021 Aboriginal cultural heritage protection laws, set down after the destruction of the 46,000-year-old Juukan Gorge rock shelter, in response to widespread opposition, The Sun Daily reported. Farmers have been outraged over what they say is onerous and costly regulation put in place after Rio Tinto legally destroyed rock shelters that had shown human habitation stretching back 46,000 years. The change may temper rising angst in the state over Indigenous rights.
Economy
Consumer sentiment slips in August
Australian consumer sentiment slipped in August as a decision by the country’s central bank not to hike interest rates for a second month did little to soothe worries about the economic outlook, the Philippine Daily Inquirer has reported. The Westpac-Melbourne Institute index of consumer sentiment dipped 0.4 per cent in August from July when it bounced 2.7 per cent. The index reading of 81.0 showed pessimists again outnumbered optimists, a level that used to be only associated with recessions. A slowdown in consumer spending is one reason the Reserve Bank Australia (RBA) held rates steady at 4.1 per cent last week, though it cautioned that it might yet have to hike further to bring inflation to heel.
https://business.inquirer.net/414779/australian-consumer-sentiment-slips-in-aug-amid-economic-angst
Business
Singapore Airlines to boost flights to Australia
Singapore Airlines is ramping up its flights into Australia to meet booming demand from travellers, with plans to add 4,700 seats a week next year, the Financial Review reported. The seats largely restore Singapore Airlines’ pre-pandemic capacity, with a fifth daily service to Melbourne at the end of May. The adjustments, which remain subject to regulatory approvals, come as part of a broader global ramp-up of Singapore Airlines’ services. Darwin and Perth flights will return to pre-COVID schedules, while Singapore Airlines will also add 238 seats a week to and from Adelaide, taking its capacity higher than before the pandemic.
Manufacturing
Cotton industry groups get $890,000 in funding to boost exports
Australian Cotton Shippers Association (ACSA) and Cotton Australia have secured an $890,000 Agricultural Trade and Market Access Corporation (ATMAC) grant to help foster an overseas customer base for Australian cotton, the Australian Manufacturing reported. ACSA and Cotton Australia will use the grant to support the “Taking Australian Cotton to the World – Realising the Opportunity project,” which will enable cotton growers in the country to broaden the network for supply chain partners and customers.
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