Pete Hegseth calls on Australia to lift defence spending amid ‘personnel crisis'
Jacqui Lambie Network Senator Jacqui Lambie reacts to US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth calling on Australia to increase defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP.
Defence Minister Richard Marles met with US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore last week to discuss the key priorities of the US-Australia alliance in the face of a potential Chinese offensive in Taiwan within the next two years.
'We have a personnel crisis in our military, and something needs to be done,' Ms Lambie said.
'That is the biggest problem you have with our national security right now, people don't want to join defence, and people do not want to stay in.'
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ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Telstra fined for disruption to emergency call service used by people with hearing, speech impairments
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The Advertiser
an hour ago
- The Advertiser
US economic growth to slow to 1.6 per cent, OECD says
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US economic growth will slow to 1.6 per cent this year from 2.8 per cent last year as President Donald Trump's erratic trade wars disrupt global commerce, leaving businesses and consumers paralysed by uncertainty, the OECD says. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast the US economy - the world's largest - will slow further to just 1.5 per cent in 2026. Trump's policies have raised average US tariff rates from around 2.5 per cent to 15.4 per cent, the highest since 1938, according to the OECD. World economic growth will slow to just 2.9 per cent this year and stay there in 2026, according to the forecast. It marks a substantial deceleration from growth of 3.3 per cent global growth last year and 3.4 per cent in 2023. The world economy has proven remarkably resilient in recent years, continuing to expand steadily in the face of global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But global trade and the economic outlook have been clouded by Trump's sweeping taxes on imports, the unpredictable way he's rolled them out and the threat of retaliation from other countries. Reversing decades of US policy in favour of freer world trade, Trump has levied 10 per cent tariffs on imports from almost every country. He's also threatened more import taxes, including a doubling of his tariffs on steel and aluminium to 50 per cent. Without mentioning Trump by name, OECD chief economist Álvaro Pereira wrote in a commentary to accompany the forecast that "we have seen a significant increase in trade barriers as well as in economic and trade policy uncertainty. This sharp rise in uncertainty has negatively impacted business and consumer confidence and is set to hold back trade and investment." China - the world's second-biggest economy - is forecast to see growth decelerate from five per cent last year to 4.7 per cent in 2025 and 4.3 per cent in 2026. Chinese exporters will be hurt by Trump's tariffs, hobbling an economy already weakened by the collapse of the nation's real estate market. Some of the damage will be offset by help from the government: Beijing last month outlined plans to cut interest rates and encourage bank lending as well as allocating more money for factory upgrades and elder care, among other things. The 20 countries that share the euro currency will collectively see economic growth pick up from 0.8 per cent last year to one per cent in 2025 and 1.2 per cent next year, the OECD said, helped by interest rate cuts from the European Central Bank. The Paris-based OECD, comprising 38 member countries, works to promote international trade and prosperity and issues periodic reports and analyses. US economic growth will slow to 1.6 per cent this year from 2.8 per cent last year as President Donald Trump's erratic trade wars disrupt global commerce, leaving businesses and consumers paralysed by uncertainty, the OECD says. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast the US economy - the world's largest - will slow further to just 1.5 per cent in 2026. Trump's policies have raised average US tariff rates from around 2.5 per cent to 15.4 per cent, the highest since 1938, according to the OECD. World economic growth will slow to just 2.9 per cent this year and stay there in 2026, according to the forecast. It marks a substantial deceleration from growth of 3.3 per cent global growth last year and 3.4 per cent in 2023. The world economy has proven remarkably resilient in recent years, continuing to expand steadily in the face of global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But global trade and the economic outlook have been clouded by Trump's sweeping taxes on imports, the unpredictable way he's rolled them out and the threat of retaliation from other countries. Reversing decades of US policy in favour of freer world trade, Trump has levied 10 per cent tariffs on imports from almost every country. He's also threatened more import taxes, including a doubling of his tariffs on steel and aluminium to 50 per cent. Without mentioning Trump by name, OECD chief economist Álvaro Pereira wrote in a commentary to accompany the forecast that "we have seen a significant increase in trade barriers as well as in economic and trade policy uncertainty. This sharp rise in uncertainty has negatively impacted business and consumer confidence and is set to hold back trade and investment." China - the world's second-biggest economy - is forecast to see growth decelerate from five per cent last year to 4.7 per cent in 2025 and 4.3 per cent in 2026. Chinese exporters will be hurt by Trump's tariffs, hobbling an economy already weakened by the collapse of the nation's real estate market. Some of the damage will be offset by help from the government: Beijing last month outlined plans to cut interest rates and encourage bank lending as well as allocating more money for factory upgrades and elder care, among other things. The 20 countries that share the euro currency will collectively see economic growth pick up from 0.8 per cent last year to one per cent in 2025 and 1.2 per cent next year, the OECD said, helped by interest rate cuts from the European Central Bank. The Paris-based OECD, comprising 38 member countries, works to promote international trade and prosperity and issues periodic reports and analyses. US economic growth will slow to 1.6 per cent this year from 2.8 per cent last year as President Donald Trump's erratic trade wars disrupt global commerce, leaving businesses and consumers paralysed by uncertainty, the OECD says. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast the US economy - the world's largest - will slow further to just 1.5 per cent in 2026. Trump's policies have raised average US tariff rates from around 2.5 per cent to 15.4 per cent, the highest since 1938, according to the OECD. World economic growth will slow to just 2.9 per cent this year and stay there in 2026, according to the forecast. It marks a substantial deceleration from growth of 3.3 per cent global growth last year and 3.4 per cent in 2023. The world economy has proven remarkably resilient in recent years, continuing to expand steadily in the face of global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But global trade and the economic outlook have been clouded by Trump's sweeping taxes on imports, the unpredictable way he's rolled them out and the threat of retaliation from other countries. Reversing decades of US policy in favour of freer world trade, Trump has levied 10 per cent tariffs on imports from almost every country. He's also threatened more import taxes, including a doubling of his tariffs on steel and aluminium to 50 per cent. Without mentioning Trump by name, OECD chief economist Álvaro Pereira wrote in a commentary to accompany the forecast that "we have seen a significant increase in trade barriers as well as in economic and trade policy uncertainty. This sharp rise in uncertainty has negatively impacted business and consumer confidence and is set to hold back trade and investment." China - the world's second-biggest economy - is forecast to see growth decelerate from five per cent last year to 4.7 per cent in 2025 and 4.3 per cent in 2026. Chinese exporters will be hurt by Trump's tariffs, hobbling an economy already weakened by the collapse of the nation's real estate market. Some of the damage will be offset by help from the government: Beijing last month outlined plans to cut interest rates and encourage bank lending as well as allocating more money for factory upgrades and elder care, among other things. The 20 countries that share the euro currency will collectively see economic growth pick up from 0.8 per cent last year to one per cent in 2025 and 1.2 per cent next year, the OECD said, helped by interest rate cuts from the European Central Bank. The Paris-based OECD, comprising 38 member countries, works to promote international trade and prosperity and issues periodic reports and analyses.
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
‘Unusual' thing happening to the Aussie dollar in wake of Trump tariffs, says Reserve Bank
The global uncertainty sparked by US President Donald Trump's tariff agenda has resulted in something unusual happening to the Australian dollar. RBA assistant governor Sarah Hunter noted on Tuesday that the Aussie dollar has been behaving differently against the greenback than what we would historically expect. 'When the outlook for global growth weakens, the Australian dollar typically depreciates,' she explained in a speech at the Economic Society of Australia Business Lunch in Brisbane. This is because investors expect the Australian economy 'to be buffeted by the global headwinds and the RBA to respond with cuts to the cash rate'. The fact that the Australian dollar is a 'risk-sensitive' currency also contributes to the depreciation as 'when global investors are worried, they tend to focus on reducing risk exposure, moving their capital to low-risk assets in countries like the United States, Switzerland and Japan.' 'This means the Australian dollar tends to lose value against these currencies,' she said. When Trump announced his global 'Liberation Day' tariffs the Aussie dollar did as expected and fell, plummeting to below 60 US cents for the first time since the pandemic. However in recent weeks, the Aussie has recovered against the greenback and has been sitting between 64 and 65 US cents which, according to Dr Hunter, is 'more unusual' in a continuing time of uncertainty. Dr Hunter said this is in part due to a broad weakness in the USD after some global investors reduced their exposure to US assets. 'The weakness in the US dollar during a period of heightened risk is in contrast with many previous episodes,' she said, 'though it's too early to know whether this dynamic will continue.'
