Afternoon Report | ASX flat as NAB jumps, oil slides
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Welcome to the Fear and Greed Business News Afternoon Report for Thursday, the 2nd of July, 2026. I'm Michael Thompson, and every afternoon we've got the five stories that happened today that you need to know about. Let's get cracking.
How did the ASX 200 perform today and why did NAB jump?
Story number one, the S&P ASX 200 finished pretty much flat today, up just 1.6 points to 8,725 points after recovering from a sharp early sell-off. strength in the banking sector really offsetting broad weakness across the rest of the market. Banks helped lift the market after Bank of America upgraded NAB to a buy recommendation. NAB jumped nearly 4% while Westpac, ANZ and Commonwealth Bank also finished higher. The energy stocks were weaker as oil prices continued to ease. More on that one in a moment. Woodside and Santos are both fell while utilities also came under pressure. Origin Energy was down more than 5% today. Retail stocks struggled after Goldman Sachs downgraded Wesfarmers, sending Wes down more than 4% today.
Coles was also off again today. Investors continuing to mull over its potential acquisition of pet retail and vet group Greencross. Among the individual companies, Northern Stars Definitely worth mentioning, it jumped nearly 6% today after appointing a new chief executive. Story number two, I mentioned oil prices. They have fallen for a third straight day as tensions in the Middle East continue to ease and indirect talks between the US and Iran show signs of progress. Brent crude slipped to around 71 US dollars a barrel after falling more than 3% over the previous two sessions. The decline comes as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has climbed back above 10 million barrels a day, suggesting that Iran's ability or willingness to disrupt global oil supplies is becoming more limited.
Why did oil prices fall and what does rising Hormuz shipping mean for supply?
The next round of US-Iran talks is expected after ceremonies for Iran's former Supreme Leader conclude later this week. Story number three, very much linked to story number two, really. Fuel has become the biggest cost pressure facing Australian small and medium-sized businesses, overtaking both utilities and interest rates, according to new research. The data from MYOB quoted in the Financial Review shows more than half of SMEs now identify fuel as a major financial strain, up from just one in four late last year, and The jump comes as the federal government's temporary fuel excise cut begins to be wound back. The excise discount halved from $0.32 to $0.16 a litre on July 1, yesterday, before returning to its full rate next month.
MYOB found overall fuel expenses rose almost 27% over the past year, with nearly two-thirds of businesses spending more on fuel than they did a year ago. Story number four, a man accused of helping smuggle a group of people into Australia by boat has been arrested just hours after the vessel landed on a remote Queensland beach.
How is rising fuel cost becoming the biggest pressure for Australian SMEs?
Authorities allege that the 34-year-old Taiwanese national helped bring 12 people believed to be from China ashore near Weipa in far north Queensland before sunrise on Tuesday and The group was later taken to a nearby resort in rental cars before being located by authorities. The man was arrested after members of the public spotted him buying breakfast at a local bakery, leading police to a nearby supermarket car park. He has been charged with aggravated people smuggling, while Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke today said that everyone who entered Australia illegally has now been deported. And finally, story number five, a serious one to finish on. Russia has launched another major assault on Ukraine's capital with missiles and drones killing at least 10 people and injuring dozens more in Kiev.
The New York Times reports the overnight attack triggered fires across the city, damaged apartment buildings, a hotel, a market and an ambulance station, left ambulance crews searching through rubble for survivors. Residents spent the night sheltering in subway stations. as repeated waves of missiles hit the city. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had warned hours earlier that intelligence suggested Russia was preparing another large-scale attack.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:03–0:15
2
How did the ASX 200 perform today and why did NAB jump?
0:15–1:56
3
Why did oil prices fall and what does rising Hormuz shipping mean for supply?
1:56–3:09
4
How is rising fuel cost becoming the biggest pressure for Australian SMEs?
3:09–4:34
5
What happened in the alleged people smuggling incident off Queensland?
4:34–4:47
6
How severe was Russia’s latest attack on Kyiv and what were the impacts?
4:47–4:48
Speakers
1 identifiedMore from FEAR & GREED | Business News
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