Afternoon Report | Markets react to jobs shock
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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 23rd 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 go.
How did the Australian jobs surprise reshape markets today?
Story number one, the S&P ASX 200 rose 0.2% today to 8,839 points. It was a lot higher than that earlier in the day but it gave up most of its gains after a surprisingly strong jobs report. boosted expectations of another interest rate rise. The economy added 76,000 jobs in June, which is a lot more than economists were expecting, although many of them were part-time. We'll take a closer look at this tomorrow morning and what it means for interest rates. But in terms of the local market, materials and mining stocks led the market higher.
Why did materials and energy stocks lead the ASX 200 after the jobs data?
BHP, Fortescue, Northern Star all gained. James Hardy jumped more than 6% after upgrading sales guidance. Energy stocks were supported by another rise in oil prices as tensions in the Middle East continued to escalate. Technology, though, was the weakest sector after Google parent Alphabet surprised investors in the US with just how much cash it is sinking into AI infrastructure that weighed on global tech stocks, sending Xero and WiseTech here sharply lower. The latter was the worst on the Bourse today, down 6.5%. On to story number two now, and Macquarie chairman Glenn Stephens says that the group will review the appointment of KPMG as its auditor, raising the prospect that it could actually ditch the firm before it even starts in the role.
Stephens said the Macquarie board had already made, quote, formal inquiries of KPMG, given a stream of departures after senior figures at the auditing firm were caught using confidential client files to win contracts. His comments came as CEO Shamara Wickramanyaka announced that she would step down later in the year and be replaced by Macquarie's head of banking, Greg Ward. We'll have more on this one tomorrow morning. Speaking at Macquarie's annual shareholder meeting, Stephen said the board was making an assessment of the integrity of KPMG's pursuit of our audit tender.
What prompted Macquarie to review KPMG’s appointment as auditor?
which would be supported by an external review conducted by Allens. Now the company has been criticized over how it awarded KPMG the audit contract, which is one of the most lucrative and really well coveted among major ASX listed businesses. Big day for Macquarie and the bank's share price was down 0.6% today. Story number three, Labor has backed a major expansion of superannuation, voting to require employers to pay super to all workers under 18, regardless of how many hours they work. The proposal was championed at today's Labor Party conference in Adelaide by Labor's youngest senator, 22-year-old Charlotte Walker, who told the conference that teens are among the workers most vulnerable to wage theft and unpaid super.
At the moment, teenagers are only required to be paid super. if they work more than 30 hours a week. Meanwhile, the conference also heard calls from the Australian Workers' Union for stronger action to keep more Australian gas available for local manufacturers. Delegates voted to pave the way for future changes to diesel fuel tax concessions for mining companies. That's all part of Labor's climate agenda. There was a large series of announcements from the Prime Minister, including new workplace policies, a new fair work court and support for a national task force on AI. And of course, we will dig into all of that on tomorrow morning's show too. Story number four, how about this one? Kmart is bringing its checkouts back to the front of stores.
As part of a major overhaul of its Australian retail network, the retailer has been one of the big success stories for owner Wes Farmers in recent years, particularly because of the boom in its home brand, Anko. But dozens of stores are now being refurbished under Kmart's new Plan C Plus format.
What policy changes did Labor delegates back at the party conference?
The goal is to do this by the middle of next year, taking the total to around 60 stores nationwide operating under that format. The redesigned stores will have larger fashion, beauty and home departments, improved layouts, expanded click and collect services.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:06–0:17
2
How did the Australian jobs surprise reshape markets today?
0:17–0:51
3
Why did materials and energy stocks lead the ASX 200 after the jobs data?
0:51–2:14
4
What prompted Macquarie to review KPMG’s appointment as auditor?
2:14–4:02
5
What policy changes did Labor delegates back at the party conference?
4:02–5:27
6
Why is Kmart moving checkouts to the front in its Plan C Plus overhaul?
5:27–6:19
7
What are the key details and controversies of the US–Saudi civil nuclear deal?
6:19–6:41