December 2, 2025 • 16 mins
Wednesday 3 December 2025
In a very busy 24 hours for Canberra, the federal government launches its national AI plan, releases a report into jobs for mates and negotiates with the White House over drug costs.
- Bond yields hit ten-month highs suggesting rate rises are coming.
- Samsung launches its new tri-fold phone.
- Google fined $55 million for anti-competitive behaviour,
- Blue-collar jobs are safer than white-collar jobs.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome to Fear and Greed business news you can use.
In a very busy twenty four hours for Canberra, the
Federal government launches its National AI Plan, releases a report
into Jobs for Mates, and negotiates with the White House
over drug costs. Bond yields hit ten month highs, suggesting
rate rises are coming, and Samsung launches its new trifold
phone plus. Google fined fifty five million dollars for anti
(00:30):
competitive behavior and blue collar jobs are safer than white
collar jobs. It is Wednesday, the third of December twenty
twenty five. I'm Michael Thompson and good morning Sean Aylmer.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Morning Michael Sewan.
Speaker 1 (00:41):
The main story this morning. The Federal government is staying
busy ahead of the holiday season, yesterday launching its National
AI Plan, releasing a two year old review into Jobs
for Mates, and conceding that yes, it is in talks
with the US administration over the price of pharmaceuticals here
in Australia. Will start with the National AI Plan, light
(01:03):
on regulation, but it will push tech companies to build
their own renewable energy sources.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
Yes, it was pretty wishy washy AI Plan. I've got
to say huge amounts of energy, of course, and needed
for data centers, which are the essential infrastructure for AI.
The plan suggests a coordinated approach to energy demand from
data for data centers with state governments and potentially the
big tech players. So I suppose that's something to come
(01:31):
out of it. No proposed new laws to regulate AI. Instead,
a thirty million dollar Safety Institute will be created to
advise on the need for new laws on a case
by case basis. Lots of words around protection, worker rights,
stuff like that. No kind of exciting vision saying invest
(01:52):
in Australia and this is what will happen. In fact,
Industry Minister Tim Air so the plan focused on capturing
the economic opportunities of AI, share the benefits broadly and
keeping Australian safe as technology evolves. That doesn't really inspire
investment as far as I'm concerned. The government's also threatened
tough intervention if employers behave badly.
Speaker 1 (02:12):
Is it a missed opportunity? Do you think, because this
space is moving so quickly, you really only get one
chance to launch a national AI plan and have people
take notice of it before it's already out gone too far.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
Yes. The flip side the light on regulation isn't a
bad thing. So if the government had suddenly instituted all
these rules, businesses would have gotten quite scared. So the
fact that there aren't rules isn't such a bad thing.
So perhaps we'll looking back in hindsight and say, hey,
actually not a bad idea to actually have very little
(02:47):
in it. Because the market itself is moving so fast.
They'll make the rules.
Speaker 1 (02:51):
Okay, all right onto the report into the Jobs for
Mates culture. The government said it'll implement an appointment framework
to tackle the issue, though it won't actually enact many
other recommendations from the report.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
No so, the report released yesterday's over two years old,
says Australian's fear the federal government is appointing overpaid political
hacks that's a quote to public service jobs. At the
same time. At the same time, ministers have frustrated that
officials can't deliver new talent to the bureaucracy. Commissioned by
Labour in twenty twenty three, the review recommends an independent,
(03:27):
standard public sector selection process being shrined in law for
BARD appointments, with fair and open recruitment processes except in
exceptional circumstances under the discretion of the Prime Minister. Politicians
and their staff as should be barred from holding government
board positions within six months of leaving their roles, and
eighteen months for those previously working in ministerial portfolios. The
(03:48):
review recommended. Don't even know why I'm saying it, because
it ain't going to come to pass. The review also
sought to bar ministers from making appointments within six months
of a federal election. Basically, the Gape government's not taking
up the response anyway.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
Is this why it hasn't seen kind of any attention,
hasn't been released even though it's two years old and
it's being brought out now started December, after Parliament has
finished sitting for the year. Just kind of get it out,
get it out of.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
The way, I suppose, I mean, to be honest. I mean,
Katie Gallaher yesterday was talking about the Finance Minister was
talking about the fact that most of this actually fixed
the coalition government and what happened there. I mean, I
don't think either side of politics particularly wants to make
a push on this, and the Greens and the Teals
(04:38):
were interested in it, but I don't think the two
major parties.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
So I think I'm a bit cynical today, Sean, I
just are very simple. I won't be synical about this
next one. Health Minister Mark Butler has conceded that the
federal government is in talks with the US administration about
medicine's prices.
Speaker 2 (04:54):
Yes, well, he wouldn't say whether Washington had asked Australia
to pay more for American drugs through the Palm Pharmaceutical
Benefit scheme. I reckon they did. Probably maybe I'm big sendingal.
Butler is responding to questions about an agreement by Britain
to pay twenty five percent more for US drugs or
medicines in exchange for making UK drug makers exempt from tariffs. Yesterday,
(05:17):
Butler said there had been a significant change of policy
by the US administration and the local government is talking
to Washington. The big pharmaceutical call companies about medicine prices.
The issue here in Australia. The pharmaceutical benefit schemes buys
medicines in bulk from drug companies gets so much cheaper
Australians are then charged a flat fee at the pharmacy.
(05:37):
The government might pay thousands of dollars for a product
that's ultimately available to a consumer at a maximum of
thirty one dollars and sixty cents per script. That's going
to come down to twenty five dollars next month. The
US argues that's protectionism, and it's a pretty good argument personally, frank.
So that's really where the where the case sits at
(05:58):
the moment.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
One more out of can The Albanesi government has launched
a ten million dollar advertising campaign to promote it's impending
social media band for children. It's getting very close.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Kicks in in all weeks time, and yesterday Communications Minister
Arnika Wells signaled that more platforms could be included now
so far TikTok, Snapchat, Reddit, ex YouTube, Instagram and Facebook
that will be required to take reasonable steps to prevent
persons under sixteen years of age from creating or holding
(06:30):
an account. The campaign includes six point four million dollars
of advertising the new rules, and then there's a bunch
of money for creative costs and market research and stuff
like that. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
The other thing that emerged out of Camber yesterday, Sean,
was something that we'll probably hear a bit about over
the coming weeks. The internal review from the coalition's loss
at the last election has really singled out the Donald
Trump factor, saying that that turned voters off Peter Dutton,
and there may have been a point there. And the
(07:01):
thing that I find fascinating about this is that the
party is actually considering whether the report needs to be
censored because it is, according to nine newspapers, too embarrassing
to be made public.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
That's that right. We all thought it was nuclear. It
was actually the fact that Peter had done seemed to
sympathize with Donald Trump.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
There you go. Indeed, markets, where did the local share
market finish up?
Speaker 2 (07:26):
Yesterday? The S and PAX two hundred closed up slightly.
Now once again the material stocks, including the big miners,
led the way. Vhre, Rio Tinto, and Fortescue always more
than one percent. Energy companies were also higher, while tech
stocks will hold off. I'm going to do a little
test here on you, Michael, Oh, yeah, do you know
what the market closed out? Coud you do the afternoon report? Well?
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Actually I do. I do know it was up point
two of a percent higher fire and eighty points yesterday sean.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
Eighty five seven, nine point seven zero. But I don't
want to be a pedant.
Speaker 1 (08:01):
Mich Well, I round up because I'm all about the
ease of consumption of information. Sean. If you're heading home
in the afternoon and you're stuck in traffic, you don't
want decimal points, you want.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
Holding round a numbers. I'm totally with You're.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Just being a pedant. Okay, bond mark come on, let's
get let's crank this up a bit. Let's get into
bond markets. They there's a bit of action.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Sean, Ah, action are plenty. I mean, Ossie bondyr els
ten month high is Michael. Yes, Look, don't take drink
of water. Just actually accept this as an exciting, exciting story.
Speaker 1 (08:37):
It's exciting because of what it means.
Speaker 2 (08:40):
Right, Yes, that's right. So that's the three year bond
rate rose to three point nine three percent ten years
at four point sixty two percent. As you know, Michael,
you just alluded to it. Bond markets trade on interest
rate expectations. So what the three year rate is telling
us is that over the next thirty six months or so,
interest rates are light feed to average thirty three basis
(09:00):
points higher than what they are now. That's what the
market's saying. The money market has now priced to a
seventy percent chance of a reserve of the Reserve Bank
lifting the official cash rate next year. A week ago,
I mean, as we record, literally a week ago, it
was about a seventy percent chance of a rate cut.
And then we got those October CPI figures. Now they
(09:21):
sell off in the bond market, sell off price four
yeels rise. It followed the Japanese bond nils hitting their
highest level for since two thousand and eight. So plenty
going on in the bond market.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Oh, it has been a bumper start to the show.
We've still got more to come, but we don't have
a lot of time to do it. Back in a
moment with the rest of the day's business news, Shawn.
The Federal Court has ordered Google Asia Pacific to pay
fifty five million dollars in penalties for engaging in anti
(09:57):
competitive conduct following an investigation by the Competition Watchdog.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
Between December twenty nineteen and March twenty twenty one, Google
reached understandings with Telstra and Optus to pre install Google
Search onto Android phones and not other search engines. As
part of this deel, Telstra and Optus received a share
of the revenue Google earned when they displayed ads via
Google Search. Google admitted it had engaged in anti competitive
conduct and cooperated with the a Triple C. The ATRIABLEC
(10:23):
Deputy chair Mit Kao said the penalty sends a strong
message to all businesses that there are serious and costly
consequences for engaging in anti competitive conduct.
Speaker 1 (10:32):
Indeed, now sean many blue collar workers are being paid
more than white collar workers, and the introduction of AI
is more threatening to office workers than to tradees.
Speaker 2 (10:44):
That's pretty much the findings of an AFR report into
wages over the last decade. Over the past ten years,
electricians and plumbers have earned more than financed insurance workers,
more than media and telcoms employees, that's us, Michael, more
than professional and scientific staff. Now top of the tree
have been mining workers who took home on average one
hundred and fifty six thousand dollars. Sparky's plumbers and garbos
(11:08):
took home on average one hundred and twenty two thousand,
finance and insurance employees one hundred and four thousand. Your
report also goes to talking about data centers. We love
data centers. They're going to do white color workers out
of a job, but they need to be built. You
need carpenters and plumbers and electricians and air conditioning experts.
(11:29):
They'll work together on complex systems. Be a bit of
a boom for tradees, not so much for white collar workers.
Hence AI far greater a threat for those in the
office than those on site.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
Sean, I'm not seeing a great deal of good news
for you and for me in this story and the
data center boom, because like we can write, we can
host podcasts. AI can do all of that, but I
don't know about you. I'm not much of a carpenter
or an air conditioning specialist, or a plumber or an electrician,
(12:03):
so I'm useless to building data centers. So I've just
got as reskill upskill. Find any skill that's usable.
Speaker 2 (12:11):
Yeah, yep, yep, Yeah, you can write a book about
it maybe.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
Yeah, yeah, hey, I can do that, Sean, this is
a worry. Colin's Foods, the largest operator of KFC stores
and the Taco Bell franchiser in Australia, said profits for
these six months to October twelve jumped thirteen percent.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
Lifted and Collins lifted its full year profit guidance with
strength in its operations in Germany and the Netherlands. As well. Well.
Things are looking better. Chief executive Xavier Semine said higher
interstrates could hurt the outlook, and the group share price
price finished down about three and a half percent. Been
a bit of action in the fast food sector. One
we didn't talk about last week, but we should have.
(12:49):
Chicken Group El Janner started in Sydney's western subburbs, sold
a private equity for almost a billion dollars.
Speaker 1 (12:56):
Yeah, that's an incredible success story, that one. Turning to
international news, Sean negotiations for peace between Russia and Ukraine continue,
and President Vladimir Zelenski said Kiev's priorities are maintaining Ukraine's
sovereignty and securing strong security guarantees.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
He said the territorial issue is the most difficult, as
Russia continues to demand that Ukraine give up areas of
eastern don Bass region that it still holds. Kiev maintains
it will never do that. Zelensky was speaking after meeting
French President Emanuel Macron in Paris, where he joined a
core with European leaders, including those of the UK, Germany,
Poland Initially. Meanwhile, Ukrainian and US negotiators finished two days
(13:36):
of meetings in Florida as they worked to revise a
peace plan viewed as favoring Russia. US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff,
who attended the talks with the Ukrainian delegation, is now
bound for Russia, where he will meet Russian President Vladimir Pertin.
They will be joined by President Trump's son in law
and advisor, Jared Kushna. That's all according to BBC, that
(13:57):
meeting's occurring about now.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
Finally, Sean, I don't know what to make of this one.
Samsung has unveiled its first ever trifold smartphone. Okay, it
demonstrates clear engineering prowess and in foldable devices, but the
broader category still hasn't actually caught on with mainstream consumers.
So it feels like the technology is actually kind of
(14:21):
almost outpacing the demand right now.
Speaker 2 (14:24):
Yeah, but I like this one. So. The handset, called
the Galaxy Z trifold, is part of a small subset
of folding phones that have two hinges. Basically you can
transform them into a larger tablet sized device. Now, Samsung's
initially launching the device in South Korea, Plans for the US, China, Taiwan, Singapore,
(14:46):
UAE no announcement on Australia. Yet now that's a trifol.
Apple next year is expected to announce its first folding
phone is a bifold right, but when closed, the trifolds
out screen offers similar dimensions to a regular smartphone. When unfooled,
there's a good word, provides a tablet style experience with
(15:07):
a ten inch display. According to Bloomberg, what I like
most of all that in a tablet like mode, each
of the device's screens can independently run a different app.
So it's like having three separate phones side by side
that you can run. Isn't that cool?
Speaker 1 (15:26):
That is very, very very cool. I could feel completely
overwhelming and over stimulating, but it would be so cool
to just unleash that thing and just suddenly you take it.
Speaker 2 (15:40):
You mean, unfurlss unfurlish.
Speaker 1 (15:42):
And away you go. Well, that's a heck of a story.
Speaker 2 (15:44):
That one.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Up next Sean is Fear and Greed Q and A.
And your guest today is John o'laughlan, who is the
managing director of Coinbased Australia.
Speaker 2 (15:54):
Plenty going on in cryptocurrency markets, Bitcoin particularly, it's down
about twenty five percent since peak, so we ask him
about that and what to do when you're investing in cryptos,
not so much whether they're going to go up or down,
but how you can do it safely.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Yeah, it's a great chat. John joined us from India,
where which is one of the areas that he's looking after,
great insights. He's always been terrific whenever we speak to him.
It's coming up next to the Fear and Greed playlist
on your podcast platform or at Fearangreed dot com dot au,
which is where you sign up for the free daily newsletter.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
Thank you Sean, Thank you Michael.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
It's Wednesday, the third of December twenty twenty five. Make
sure you're following the podcast and please join us online
on LinkedIn, Instagram, x TikTok and Facebook. Oh, Michael Thompson,
And that was Fear and Greed. Have a great day.
Welcome to Fear and Greed business news you can use.
In a very busy twenty four hours for Canberra, the
Federal government launches its National AI Plan, releases a report
into Jobs for Mates, and negotiates with the White House
over drug costs. Bond yields hit ten month highs, suggesting
rate rises are coming, and Samsung launches its new trifold
phone plus. Google fined fifty five million dollars for anti
(00:30):
competitive behavior and blue collar jobs are safer than white
collar jobs. It is Wednesday, the third of December twenty
twenty five. I'm Michael Thompson and good morning Sean Aylmer.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Morning Michael Sewan.
Speaker 1 (00:41):
The main story this morning. The Federal government is staying
busy ahead of the holiday season, yesterday launching its National
AI Plan, releasing a two year old review into Jobs
for Mates, and conceding that yes, it is in talks
with the US administration over the price of pharmaceuticals here
in Australia. Will start with the National AI Plan, light
(01:03):
on regulation, but it will push tech companies to build
their own renewable energy sources.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
Yes, it was pretty wishy washy AI Plan. I've got
to say huge amounts of energy, of course, and needed
for data centers, which are the essential infrastructure for AI.
The plan suggests a coordinated approach to energy demand from
data for data centers with state governments and potentially the
big tech players. So I suppose that's something to come
(01:31):
out of it. No proposed new laws to regulate AI. Instead,
a thirty million dollar Safety Institute will be created to
advise on the need for new laws on a case
by case basis. Lots of words around protection, worker rights,
stuff like that. No kind of exciting vision saying invest
(01:52):
in Australia and this is what will happen. In fact,
Industry Minister Tim Air so the plan focused on capturing
the economic opportunities of AI, share the benefits broadly and
keeping Australian safe as technology evolves. That doesn't really inspire
investment as far as I'm concerned. The government's also threatened
tough intervention if employers behave badly.
Speaker 1 (02:12):
Is it a missed opportunity? Do you think, because this
space is moving so quickly, you really only get one
chance to launch a national AI plan and have people
take notice of it before it's already out gone too far.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
Yes. The flip side the light on regulation isn't a
bad thing. So if the government had suddenly instituted all
these rules, businesses would have gotten quite scared. So the
fact that there aren't rules isn't such a bad thing.
So perhaps we'll looking back in hindsight and say, hey,
actually not a bad idea to actually have very little
(02:47):
in it. Because the market itself is moving so fast.
They'll make the rules.
Speaker 1 (02:51):
Okay, all right onto the report into the Jobs for
Mates culture. The government said it'll implement an appointment framework
to tackle the issue, though it won't actually enact many
other recommendations from the report.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
No so, the report released yesterday's over two years old,
says Australian's fear the federal government is appointing overpaid political
hacks that's a quote to public service jobs. At the
same time. At the same time, ministers have frustrated that
officials can't deliver new talent to the bureaucracy. Commissioned by
Labour in twenty twenty three, the review recommends an independent,
(03:27):
standard public sector selection process being shrined in law for
BARD appointments, with fair and open recruitment processes except in
exceptional circumstances under the discretion of the Prime Minister. Politicians
and their staff as should be barred from holding government
board positions within six months of leaving their roles, and
eighteen months for those previously working in ministerial portfolios. The
(03:48):
review recommended. Don't even know why I'm saying it, because
it ain't going to come to pass. The review also
sought to bar ministers from making appointments within six months
of a federal election. Basically, the Gape government's not taking
up the response anyway.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
Is this why it hasn't seen kind of any attention,
hasn't been released even though it's two years old and
it's being brought out now started December, after Parliament has
finished sitting for the year. Just kind of get it out,
get it out of.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
The way, I suppose, I mean, to be honest. I mean,
Katie Gallaher yesterday was talking about the Finance Minister was
talking about the fact that most of this actually fixed
the coalition government and what happened there. I mean, I
don't think either side of politics particularly wants to make
a push on this, and the Greens and the Teals
(04:38):
were interested in it, but I don't think the two
major parties.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
So I think I'm a bit cynical today, Sean, I
just are very simple. I won't be synical about this
next one. Health Minister Mark Butler has conceded that the
federal government is in talks with the US administration about
medicine's prices.
Speaker 2 (04:54):
Yes, well, he wouldn't say whether Washington had asked Australia
to pay more for American drugs through the Palm Pharmaceutical
Benefit scheme. I reckon they did. Probably maybe I'm big sendingal.
Butler is responding to questions about an agreement by Britain
to pay twenty five percent more for US drugs or
medicines in exchange for making UK drug makers exempt from tariffs. Yesterday,
(05:17):
Butler said there had been a significant change of policy
by the US administration and the local government is talking
to Washington. The big pharmaceutical call companies about medicine prices.
The issue here in Australia. The pharmaceutical benefit schemes buys
medicines in bulk from drug companies gets so much cheaper
Australians are then charged a flat fee at the pharmacy.
(05:37):
The government might pay thousands of dollars for a product
that's ultimately available to a consumer at a maximum of
thirty one dollars and sixty cents per script. That's going
to come down to twenty five dollars next month. The
US argues that's protectionism, and it's a pretty good argument personally, frank.
So that's really where the where the case sits at
(05:58):
the moment.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
One more out of can The Albanesi government has launched
a ten million dollar advertising campaign to promote it's impending
social media band for children. It's getting very close.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Kicks in in all weeks time, and yesterday Communications Minister
Arnika Wells signaled that more platforms could be included now
so far TikTok, Snapchat, Reddit, ex YouTube, Instagram and Facebook
that will be required to take reasonable steps to prevent
persons under sixteen years of age from creating or holding
(06:30):
an account. The campaign includes six point four million dollars
of advertising the new rules, and then there's a bunch
of money for creative costs and market research and stuff
like that. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
The other thing that emerged out of Camber yesterday, Sean,
was something that we'll probably hear a bit about over
the coming weeks. The internal review from the coalition's loss
at the last election has really singled out the Donald
Trump factor, saying that that turned voters off Peter Dutton,
and there may have been a point there. And the
(07:01):
thing that I find fascinating about this is that the
party is actually considering whether the report needs to be
censored because it is, according to nine newspapers, too embarrassing
to be made public.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
That's that right. We all thought it was nuclear. It
was actually the fact that Peter had done seemed to
sympathize with Donald Trump.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
There you go. Indeed, markets, where did the local share
market finish up?
Speaker 2 (07:26):
Yesterday? The S and PAX two hundred closed up slightly.
Now once again the material stocks, including the big miners,
led the way. Vhre, Rio Tinto, and Fortescue always more
than one percent. Energy companies were also higher, while tech
stocks will hold off. I'm going to do a little
test here on you, Michael, Oh, yeah, do you know
what the market closed out? Coud you do the afternoon report? Well?
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Actually I do. I do know it was up point
two of a percent higher fire and eighty points yesterday sean.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
Eighty five seven, nine point seven zero. But I don't
want to be a pedant.
Speaker 1 (08:01):
Mich Well, I round up because I'm all about the
ease of consumption of information. Sean. If you're heading home
in the afternoon and you're stuck in traffic, you don't
want decimal points, you want.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
Holding round a numbers. I'm totally with You're.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Just being a pedant. Okay, bond mark come on, let's
get let's crank this up a bit. Let's get into
bond markets. They there's a bit of action.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Sean, Ah, action are plenty. I mean, Ossie bondyr els
ten month high is Michael. Yes, Look, don't take drink
of water. Just actually accept this as an exciting, exciting story.
Speaker 1 (08:37):
It's exciting because of what it means.
Speaker 2 (08:40):
Right, Yes, that's right. So that's the three year bond
rate rose to three point nine three percent ten years
at four point sixty two percent. As you know, Michael,
you just alluded to it. Bond markets trade on interest
rate expectations. So what the three year rate is telling
us is that over the next thirty six months or so,
interest rates are light feed to average thirty three basis
(09:00):
points higher than what they are now. That's what the
market's saying. The money market has now priced to a
seventy percent chance of a reserve of the Reserve Bank
lifting the official cash rate next year. A week ago,
I mean, as we record, literally a week ago, it
was about a seventy percent chance of a rate cut.
And then we got those October CPI figures. Now they
(09:21):
sell off in the bond market, sell off price four
yeels rise. It followed the Japanese bond nils hitting their
highest level for since two thousand and eight. So plenty
going on in the bond market.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Oh, it has been a bumper start to the show.
We've still got more to come, but we don't have
a lot of time to do it. Back in a
moment with the rest of the day's business news, Shawn.
The Federal Court has ordered Google Asia Pacific to pay
fifty five million dollars in penalties for engaging in anti
(09:57):
competitive conduct following an investigation by the Competition Watchdog.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
Between December twenty nineteen and March twenty twenty one, Google
reached understandings with Telstra and Optus to pre install Google
Search onto Android phones and not other search engines. As
part of this deel, Telstra and Optus received a share
of the revenue Google earned when they displayed ads via
Google Search. Google admitted it had engaged in anti competitive
conduct and cooperated with the a Triple C. The ATRIABLEC
(10:23):
Deputy chair Mit Kao said the penalty sends a strong
message to all businesses that there are serious and costly
consequences for engaging in anti competitive conduct.
Speaker 1 (10:32):
Indeed, now sean many blue collar workers are being paid
more than white collar workers, and the introduction of AI
is more threatening to office workers than to tradees.
Speaker 2 (10:44):
That's pretty much the findings of an AFR report into
wages over the last decade. Over the past ten years,
electricians and plumbers have earned more than financed insurance workers,
more than media and telcoms employees, that's us, Michael, more
than professional and scientific staff. Now top of the tree
have been mining workers who took home on average one
hundred and fifty six thousand dollars. Sparky's plumbers and garbos
(11:08):
took home on average one hundred and twenty two thousand,
finance and insurance employees one hundred and four thousand. Your
report also goes to talking about data centers. We love
data centers. They're going to do white color workers out
of a job, but they need to be built. You
need carpenters and plumbers and electricians and air conditioning experts.
(11:29):
They'll work together on complex systems. Be a bit of
a boom for tradees, not so much for white collar workers.
Hence AI far greater a threat for those in the
office than those on site.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
Sean, I'm not seeing a great deal of good news
for you and for me in this story and the
data center boom, because like we can write, we can
host podcasts. AI can do all of that, but I
don't know about you. I'm not much of a carpenter
or an air conditioning specialist, or a plumber or an electrician,
(12:03):
so I'm useless to building data centers. So I've just
got as reskill upskill. Find any skill that's usable.
Speaker 2 (12:11):
Yeah, yep, yep, Yeah, you can write a book about
it maybe.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
Yeah, yeah, hey, I can do that, Sean, this is
a worry. Colin's Foods, the largest operator of KFC stores
and the Taco Bell franchiser in Australia, said profits for
these six months to October twelve jumped thirteen percent.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
Lifted and Collins lifted its full year profit guidance with
strength in its operations in Germany and the Netherlands. As well. Well.
Things are looking better. Chief executive Xavier Semine said higher
interstrates could hurt the outlook, and the group share price
price finished down about three and a half percent. Been
a bit of action in the fast food sector. One
we didn't talk about last week, but we should have.
(12:49):
Chicken Group El Janner started in Sydney's western subburbs, sold
a private equity for almost a billion dollars.
Speaker 1 (12:56):
Yeah, that's an incredible success story, that one. Turning to
international news, Sean negotiations for peace between Russia and Ukraine continue,
and President Vladimir Zelenski said Kiev's priorities are maintaining Ukraine's
sovereignty and securing strong security guarantees.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
He said the territorial issue is the most difficult, as
Russia continues to demand that Ukraine give up areas of
eastern don Bass region that it still holds. Kiev maintains
it will never do that. Zelensky was speaking after meeting
French President Emanuel Macron in Paris, where he joined a
core with European leaders, including those of the UK, Germany,
Poland Initially. Meanwhile, Ukrainian and US negotiators finished two days
(13:36):
of meetings in Florida as they worked to revise a
peace plan viewed as favoring Russia. US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff,
who attended the talks with the Ukrainian delegation, is now
bound for Russia, where he will meet Russian President Vladimir Pertin.
They will be joined by President Trump's son in law
and advisor, Jared Kushna. That's all according to BBC, that
(13:57):
meeting's occurring about now.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
Finally, Sean, I don't know what to make of this one.
Samsung has unveiled its first ever trifold smartphone. Okay, it
demonstrates clear engineering prowess and in foldable devices, but the
broader category still hasn't actually caught on with mainstream consumers.
So it feels like the technology is actually kind of
(14:21):
almost outpacing the demand right now.
Speaker 2 (14:24):
Yeah, but I like this one. So. The handset, called
the Galaxy Z trifold, is part of a small subset
of folding phones that have two hinges. Basically you can
transform them into a larger tablet sized device. Now, Samsung's
initially launching the device in South Korea, Plans for the US, China, Taiwan, Singapore,
(14:46):
UAE no announcement on Australia. Yet now that's a trifol.
Apple next year is expected to announce its first folding
phone is a bifold right, but when closed, the trifolds
out screen offers similar dimensions to a regular smartphone. When unfooled,
there's a good word, provides a tablet style experience with
(15:07):
a ten inch display. According to Bloomberg, what I like
most of all that in a tablet like mode, each
of the device's screens can independently run a different app.
So it's like having three separate phones side by side
that you can run. Isn't that cool?
Speaker 1 (15:26):
That is very, very very cool. I could feel completely
overwhelming and over stimulating, but it would be so cool
to just unleash that thing and just suddenly you take it.
Speaker 2 (15:40):
You mean, unfurlss unfurlish.
Speaker 1 (15:42):
And away you go. Well, that's a heck of a story.
Speaker 2 (15:44):
That one.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Up next Sean is Fear and Greed Q and A.
And your guest today is John o'laughlan, who is the
managing director of Coinbased Australia.
Speaker 2 (15:54):
Plenty going on in cryptocurrency markets, Bitcoin particularly, it's down
about twenty five percent since peak, so we ask him
about that and what to do when you're investing in cryptos,
not so much whether they're going to go up or down,
but how you can do it safely.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Yeah, it's a great chat. John joined us from India,
where which is one of the areas that he's looking after,
great insights. He's always been terrific whenever we speak to him.
It's coming up next to the Fear and Greed playlist
on your podcast platform or at Fearangreed dot com dot au,
which is where you sign up for the free daily newsletter.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
Thank you Sean, Thank you Michael.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
It's Wednesday, the third of December twenty twenty five. Make
sure you're following the podcast and please join us online
on LinkedIn, Instagram, x TikTok and Facebook. Oh, Michael Thompson,
And that was Fear and Greed. Have a great day.
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