Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers on July 16, 2026 issued updated “statements of expectations” for APRA and ASIC, instructing the regulators to place greater emphasis on promoting economic growth while maintaining financial stability and market integrity. The government says the changes will reduce compliance burdens and save the financial sector A$780 million a year. The updated approach is part of a A$10 billion productivity package announced in May and is directed at the regulatory framework for banks and listed companies.

An analysis argues that hawkish officials at the US Federal Reserve are likely to prevail internally and back a rate increase this year as inflation remains elevated. Core PCE rose to 3.4%, while renewed Middle East hostilities, fresh Trump tariff moves and AI-related infrastructure spending are adding to energy and semiconductor costs. The piece says “almost all” FOMC participants judged some additional policy tightening would probably be needed, and it notes oil prices jumped from about $US70 to about $US80 a barrel after the ceasefire with Iran was declared “over”.

The article says SpaceX’s market value fell 22% within two weeks of listing, even after expectations that Nasdaq index inclusion would spur buying. It adds that AI-linked debt demand has weakened, citing a $US25 billion Amazon bond issue that drew less interest, alongside widening credit spreads. The piece says valuations for AI companies are under pressure, with OpenAI and Anthropic delaying IPO plans as investors question profitability pathways and the durability of capital funding.

Deloitte Access Economics forecasts Australia’s GDP growth will fall below 2% in both this financial year and the next, the first consecutive sub-2% outcome since the 1990-91 recession. It expects inflation to linger around 4% through 2026-27, with real wages contracting and unemployment rising from 4.4% to an average 4.9% next financial year before peaking at 5% the year after. The report also sees the cash rate potentially rising once more to 4.6% in August, even as markets have shifted to pricing in cuts within the period. Western Australia is projected to grow just 0.7% this financial year, the weakest pace nationally.

The Bank of Japan failed to defend what had been seen as a 162 yen-per-dollar “red line,” after the currency briefly slid to a 40-year low. The BOJ has used more than $A100 billion in foreign-exchange reserves to intervene, but structural interest-rate differentials continue to widen. The article warns that if Japan is forced into large-scale sales of the $US1.2 trillion in US Treasuries it holds, US yields could jump, dollar liquidity could tighten and global financial markets could be hit. The episode unfolded in the first week of July 2026, alongside a surge in the US fiscal deficit as federal debt nears $US40 trillion, creating a systemic liquidity risk.

A slower-than-expected pickup in the US manufacturing PMI, alongside easing expectations around the US-Iran war, pushed the 10-year Treasury yield down to 4.47% and helped gold rebound 1.1% to $US4,082.40 an ounce. Traders also bet the Strait of Hormuz could reopen, sending Brent crude down 1.9% to $US71.57 a barrel. AI chipmakers including NVIDIA and Micron fell sharply, described in the report as a technical pullback rather than a new fundamental catalyst.

Australia’s Albanese government launched the Solar Sharer scheme on July 1, 2026, requiring power retailers to provide customers with three hours of free electricity each day from 11am to 2pm. Retailers must keep prices in the rest of the day within regulated caps, but rates outside the free window have typically increased as a result. Several retailers have warned some households could end up with higher overall bills, particularly if they cannot significantly shift their electricity use. The mandatory reform applies in NSW, south-east Queensland and South Australia, with Victoria set to start a similar scheme in October.

Australia’s federal government is preparing sweeping regulatory reforms that would require PwC, KPMG and other global firms to structurally separate their audit and consulting operations and restrict offering both services to the same client. The proposals also include a 400-partner cap, shorter audit tenures and stronger enforcement powers for ASIC. The overhaul follows KPMG’s recent confidential-data misuse scandal and PwC’s tax information leak, and is aimed at restoring trust in the sector.