Netflix has launched an app called “Netflix Playground” that will feature games built around popular children’s characters ‌such as Peppa Pig and Sesame Street.

Analysts say the streaming giant’s gaming efforts ‌have yet to emerge as a major growth driver.

One of the main challenges, analysts believe, is Netflix’s relatively limited portfolio of iconic intellectual property compared with rivals such as Warner Bros Discovery, which owns franchises including DC Comics.

Some of ‌the most ‌popular games ⁠from Netflix include Rockstar Games’ GTA: San Andreas and those based ​on its own hit shows such as Squid Game: Unleashed.

The streaming giant said the new features aim to be a “curated space where parents know kids are entertained, engaged and enriched”.

The move is also aimed at deepening engagement with families, a segment ⁠where children’s content has traditionally been seen ‌as ​helping reduce churn because parents are less likely to cancel.

“Emphasising kids programs will ​make Netflix stickier ‌for households with children,” Emarketer senior analyst Ross Benes said.

The new app will ​help Netflix “compete in the one area where it has a deficiency compared to Disney+, which is children’s programming,” he added.

The new app is ​designed ​for children eight years old ​and younger and is included in all ‌levels of Netflix membership.

Each game will be playable offline, including Playtime With Peppa Pig, Dr Seuss’s Horton! and Sesame Street.

In addition to parental controls, the platform ensures no ads, in-app purchases or extra fees.

Netflix Playground is available for download in the ​United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, the Philippines and New Zealand.

The company will ​launch globally towards the ⁠end of this month.

Electric bike sales are surging as rising fuel costs push commuters to find a cheaper way to get around, industry figures say.

While Australian e-bike sales have been climbing for years, retailers say recent fuel price pressures have sharply accelerated the trend.

“We’ve seen a massive spike in interest in e-bikes in the last couple of weeks,” Peter Bourke, general manager of Bicycle Industries Australia, told AAP.

Sales accelerated as consumers began to expect fuel price shocks related to global supply challenges to stick around beyond the short term, Mr Bourke said.

“It took a few weeks for people to understand the price rise wasn’t going to be a one or two week thing,” he said.

“That’s when shops began to see a lot more foot traffic.”

The evidence remains anecdotal, but Mr Bourke insisted e-bike retailers nationwide were seeing more buyer interest.

One such retailer is bike store 99 Bikes South Melbourne, where e-bike sales have roughly quadrupled in recent weeks, manager Jake Shaw said.

“When (petrol) prices hit $2.50 (per litre), instantly we had a jump in sales,” Mr Shaw said.

The spike has not yet been as significant as that experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic but is showing no signs of slowing, he said.

“It’s getting close,” he said.

It comes as experts warn the forces driving up fuel costs are unlikely to ease quickly despite some temporary signs of relief.

On Monday, Energy Minister Chris Bowen announced Australia had secured fuel supply into May, securing orders beyond a previous mid-April horizon.

It followed the federal government’s decision to halve taxes on petrol and diesel and an agreement by states to pass on an expected GST windfall.

But the combined savings, worth more than 30c a litre, have not offset the impact of high oil prices due to Iran’s restriction of supply through the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump has flagged strikes on Iran could end within weeks, recently saying core objectives were nearing completion.

In an expletive-laden social media post on Sunday (Monday AEST), Mr Trump threatened Iran to open the “F***in’ Strait” or the regime will be “living in Hell”.

The federal government has accepted the impacts of the war will continue, even if it comes to a swift end.

The flow-on effects on fuel prices and inflation will have a long tail, Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Matt Thistlethwaite said on Sunday.

“If (the war) ended tomorrow, there’d still be effects in the coming months, but we’re planning for that,” he said.

Drivers returning home from Easter holidays have been urged to slow down after a string of tragic road deaths over the long weekend.

Since Friday, at least 14 people have been killed on roads, including four deaths in Queensland.

There has been one death in Victoria, two in Tasmania, three in South Australia, one in the Northern Territory and three in NSW. Data from Western Australia has yet to be processed.

With many Australians expected to return from Easter vacations on Monday, police are calling on drivers to take care.

“Behind all of those numbers is a person, a family member, a loved one,” Queensland Police Chief Superintendent Mark Wheeler told Nine’s Today program.

“What we’re seeing time and time again is dangerous driving behaviours … playing a part in all of these tragedies.”

A Victorian mother of four was among those killed on Queensland’s roads.

The 51-year-old was a passenger in a Ford hatchback travelling on School Road in Logan Reserve, south of Brisbane, about 9pm on Saturday when her car was hit head-on by a Ford Falcon utility.

The victim, who had been returning from a family celebration, died at the scene.

Her 21-year-old niece sustained serious leg and back injuries, while a one-year-old child in the car miraculously escaped harm.

Investigations are ongoing and police are exploring whether it is linked to hooning incidents in the state’s southeast during the weekend.

At Merriwa in the NSW upper Hunter area, a car crashed into an embankment after leaving the road on Sunday night.

Paramedics treated a man but he died.

A few hours earlier, emergency services were called to South West Rocks on the NSW mid north coast.

They found a motorbike rider had crashed on the road before becoming trapped under a nearby vehicle.

Emergency crews worked to free him before he was treated by paramedics for critical injuries, but he was unable to be saved.

On Saturday, in far north Queensland, a 31-year-old man lost control of his quad bike on a local road in East Palmerston, a rural farming area near Innisfail.

His green Kawasaki bike struck a pole and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Nearly two hours later, a black Honda motorbike collided with a Kia Cerato in Thornlands, about 30km southeast of the Brisbane city centre.

The 18-year-old rider died after being transported to hospital with critical injuries. The Kia driver was uninjured.

On Tasmania’s west coast, an 81-year-old passenger died after an all-terrain vehicle crashed and rolled at Macquarie Heads beach, landing at the water’s edge.

Members of the public discovered the vehicle partially submerged and the man, who had sustained critical injuries, was taken to hospital before his death.

In South Australia, two men, one riding a Honda motorcycle and the other a Suzuki, died in a collision at Paracombe in the Adelaide Hills about 2.30pm on Saturday.

Another South Australian man, riding a Harley Davidson, died on Friday after he crashed into a traffic light, police said.

Meanwhile, in NSW, a man in his 40s travelling with several other motorbike riders, crashed on the Monaro Highway near Cooma on Friday and died.

Traffic is expected to be heavier across many parts of Australia on Monday as the Easter break comes to an end.

“It may take you a little longer to get home, but get home safely, don’t race the GPS, be patient,” NSW Police assistant commissioner David Driver told Nine’s Today program.

More than 1336 people have died on Australia’s roads in the 12 months to February, according to the federal government figures, marking a 4.4 per cent increase from the same time the previous year.

Economists will be keeping an eye on consumer spending and confidence data released over the coming week.

But the smattering of second-tier data in Australia is likely to be overshadowed by developments in the Middle East again.

A hawkish national address by US President Donald Trump sent markets into a tizzy ahead of the Easter break.

“The key takeaways were that the US would hit Iran ‘extremely hard over the next 2‑3 weeks’ and would hit Iran’s electric generator plants if there was no deal,” said Commonwealth Bank economist Michael Tang.

“The built‑up optimism over the past few days of a quick, peaceful end to the war was quickly extinguished.

“The risk is a longer closure of the Strait of Hormuz, as well as destruction of other key energy and oil facilities across the Middle East.”

In Australia, the S&P/ASX200 index sank 92.3 points, or 1.06 per cent, to 8,579.5 on Thursday, as oil prices soared more than six per cent to above $US107.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.13 per cent, to 46,504.67 points, the S&P 500 gained 0.11 per cent to 6,582.69 points and the Nasdaq gained 0.18 per cent, to 21,879.18.

US investors were hoping for something of substance in Mr Trump’s prime time address to suggest a timeline for an end to the Iran conflict.

But the optimism that had abounded at the start the week was scuppered by the risk of further escalation, said AMP economist My Bui.

“We started and ended the week with promises of TACOs (Trump Always Chickens Out), though it turned out that we were fed NACHOs instead (Not Actually Changing Hormuz Opening)!” she said.

Mr Trump doubled down on his threats to destroy Iran’s critical infrastructure over the weekend.

In an expletive-laden post on his Truth Social platform, he vowed to hit bridges and power plants across the nation if the strait was not opened by Tuesday evening, US time.

The Brent crude oil price advanced further, eclipsing $US111 a barrel on Monday morning, AEST.

With the Strait of Hormuz having been effectively closed for more than a month now, even an immediate end to the war would still leave months of disruption for many sectors.

Government efforts to soften the blow for consumers through cuts to the fuel excise only encourage more driving at a time when supply needs to be conserved, Ms Bui said.

What difference, if any, the announcements have made for household sentiment levels could show up in the ANZ-Roy Morgan consumer confidence index on Tuesday.

The series hit a record low of 58.8 points the prior week, while inflation expectations drifted to the highest level in that series’ 16-year history.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics will also release household spending data on Tuesday.

But the data will already be outdated by the time of its release, as it captures transactions from February, before the outbreak of the war.

Credit and debit card data from CBA till March 27 show consumers were relatively resilient with a sharp lift in spending on fuel.

Spending was slightly softer on food and household goods but above average savings buffers were assisting households to smooth consumption, said CBA’s economics team.

Australian share futures edged up five points, or 0.05 per cent, to 5,166.

Oil prices rose, bonds fell ‌and stocks were mixed at the start of trading in Asia on Monday as US President Donald Trump vowed “hell” if Tehran does not meet ‌his deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump’s repeated threats to destroy civilian infrastructure including power plants and bridges if the vital waterway ‌is not open by Tuesday have put traders on edge for reciprocal attacks by Iran on targets in the Gulf states.

With liquidity thin as many countries around the region observed holidays on Monday, S&P 500 e-mini futures sank 0.2 per cent, while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.5 per cent. 

The Nikkei 225 rose 1.2 per cent, as South Korea’s Kospi advanced 2.0 per cent. 

Brent crude futures opened higher, rising 1.4 per cent to $US110.58 ($A160.17) a barrel ‌after members of ‌the OPEC+ agreed ⁠on Sunday to raise its oil output quotas by 206,000 barrels per day for May. 

However, ​the increase will exist only on paper for several major producing countries behind the Strait of Hormuz that have sustained damage to oil production facilities and transport infrastructure since the war started.

“This week will continue to be dominated by developments in the Middle East, though a heavy slate of data releases — including the FOMC March minutes, February personal income, and March CPI — will compete for attention,” said Yardeni Research president and chief investment ⁠strategist Ed Yardeni, referring to the Federal Open Market Committee which sets US ‌monetary policy.

“Trump warned ​Iran that unless the Strait is opened immediately, Monday will be Obliteration Day, when the US will bomb Iran’s electric power plants,” he ​wrote in a ‌research report. 

On Friday, the S&P 500 closed up 0.1 per cent after the US jobs report showed employment growth rebounded more than expected in March, ​with a 178,000 increase in non-farm payrolls representing the biggest increase in more than a year. The unemployment rate fell to 4.3 per cent from 4.4 per cent, as people dropped out of the workforce.

The data complicates the picture for the Federal Reserve, which will ​next ​decide on monetary policy at a two-day meeting ending on ​April 29.

However, swaps pricing indicates the market is expecting no ‌moves at all from the US central bank until September 2027, according to the CME Group’s Fedwatch tool. 

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was steady at 100.23. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury bond was up 4.7 basis points at 4.3584 per cent.

In Japan, the yield on the Japanese government bond set a fresh record for the 21st century on concerns about ​rising inflation. The yield on the notes was up 2.0 basis points at 2.4 per cent, the highest since February 1999. Against the ​yen, the US dollar was flat at ⁠159.635 yen.

Gold slid 0.8 per cent to $US4,638.54 ($A6,718.63). In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin was up 1.9 per cent at $US68,915.85 ($A99,820.24), while ether gained 2.4 per cent to $US2,117.61 ($A3,067.22). 

The United States pulled off a daring rescue of two aviators whose fighter jet was shot down by Iran, plucking the pilot from behind enemy lines before setting off a complicated extraction of the second airman who hid deep in the mountains as Tehran called for Iranians to help capture him. 

The CIA looked to throw off Iran’s government before the crew member was found, launching a deception campaign to spread word inside the Islamic Republic that it had already located him. 

Even as President Donald Trump and other US officials described an almost cinematic mission, rescuers faced major obstacles, including two Black Hawk helicopters coming under fire and problems with two transport planes that forced the US military to blow them up.

“This is the first time in military memory that two US Pilots have been rescued, separately, deep in Enemy Territory,” Trump wrote early Sunday on his Truth Social platform. “WE WILL NEVER LEAVE AN AMERICAN WARFIGHTER BEHIND!”

In a pair of social media posts, Trump said the operation over the weekend required the US to remain completely silent to avoid jeopardising the effort, even as the president and top members of his administration continuously monitored the airman’s location.

The White House and the Pentagon refused to publicly discuss details about the downed fighter jet for well over 24 hours after the initial crash, particularly about the first crew member rescued from the F-15E Strike Eagle— an effort that Trump later said took seven hours in broad daylight over Iran.

The United States and Iran’s government then were both racing to find the second crew member, a weapons systems officer, whose location neither side knew.

The CIA spread word that the US had found him and were moving him by ground to get him out of Iran, according to a senior Trump administration official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made public.

The confusion allowed the CIA to uncover the location of the service member, who was hiding in a mountain crevice, the official said. 

The intelligence agency sent the coordinates to the Pentagon and the White House, where Trump ordered a rescue operation.

Meanwhile, an anchor on a channel affiliated with Iranian state television had been urging residents in the mountainous region of southwest Iran, where the fighter jet went down, to hand over any “enemy pilot” to the police and promised a reward for anyone who did.

Trump said the American aviator was being “hunted down” by enemies who were “getting closer and closer by the hour”. 

The United States was monitoring his location continuously, he said.

At the right moment, Trump said, he directed the military to send dozens of heavily armed aircraft to rescue the crew member, who the president said is “seriously wounded” but will recover.

Iranian state media reported that air strikes in southwestern Iran on Saturday killed at least three people and wounded others, in the same area where the missing American crew member was believed to be.

The American rescue mission ran into major challenges behind enemy lines. 

Iran’s joint military command claimed it struck two US Black Hawk helicopters taking part in the operation.

A person familiar with the situation said the two helicopters were able to navigate to safe airspace, although it’s unclear if they landed or if crew members were injured. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive information. 

Then, the US military was forced to bring in additional aircraft to complete the rescue of the second service member due to a technical malfunction, according to a regional intelligence official briefed on the mission. 

The US blew up two transport planes it was forced to leave behind because of the mishap, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the covert mission.

Iran’s state television on Sunday aired a video showing what it claimed were parts of a US aircraft shot down by Iranian forces, along with a photo of thick, black smoke rising. The broadcaster said Iran had shot down a transport plane and two helicopters that were part of the rescue operation.

Iran’s joint military command said the destroyed aircraft included two C-130 military transport aircraft and two Black Hawk helicopters in the province of Isfahan, where the rescue took place.

“The fact that we were able to pull off both of these operations, without a SINGLE American killed, or even wounded, just proves once again, that we have achieved overwhelming Air Dominance and Superiority over the Iranian skies,” Trump said on social media.

A second US military jet also was shot down.

Trump, however, did not mention that a second military jet also went down the same day as the F-15E.

Iranian state media said Friday that a US A-10 attack aircraft crashed after being struck by Iran’s defence forces. 

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive military situation, confirmed a second US Air Force combat aircraft went down in the Middle East on Friday. 

The official provided no other details on what happened and no information on the status of the crew.

Consumers have been warned to expect higher fuel and checkout prices for months even if the US-led war on Iran comes to an immediate end.

Relief from crippling fuel costs has begun to flow after the federal government temporarily halved taxes on petrol and diesel, while states also agreed to pass on an expected GST windfall due to higher takings on sales.

But the combined savings, worth more than 30c per litre, have not offset the full impact of expensive global oil due to the trickle of ship-board supplies coming through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively blockaded by Iran.

University of Sydney associate economics professor David Ubilava said it would take a while for supply chains to be restored to their pre-war states even after the US-Israeli conflict with Iran ended.

“The market disruption and the war has dragged on long enough that its effects will be felt for months to come,” he told AAP.

“Not only will the price of fuel go up, but so will transportation costs and, as a result of fuel surcharges, deliveries, groceries and restaurants will become more expensive as those costs are passed onto the consumer.”

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested US-Israeli strikes on Iran could end within weeks, recently saying their military objectives were on target to be achieved very shortly.

But Australian government figures have accepted the impacts of the war will continue, even if it comes to a swift end.

Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Matt Thistlethwaite on Sunday said the flow-on effects on fuel prices and inflation would have a “long tail”.

“If (the war) ended tomorrow, there’d still be effects in the coming months, but we’re planning for that,” he said.

Assoc Prof Ubilava said the longer-term inflationary impact of the war could also mean higher interest rates as the Reserve Bank tried to reduce household spending.

While the volatile situation made forecasting difficult, he said, it was hard to see the crude oil price – currently close to $US110 per barrel – returning to pre-war levels of about $US70 per barrel.

But the sooner the war ended, the better the global economic outlook would be, Assoc Prof Ubilava added.

US President Donald Trump has said in an ‌expletive-laden social media post that America will target Iran’s power plants and bridges if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened.

Trump said his deadline for Iran to ‌open the Strait of Hormuz or ‌face attacks on critical infrastructure is Tuesday evening, according to an interview he gave to the Wall Street Journal ‌on Sunday.

“If ‌they ⁠don’t do something by ​Tuesday evening, they won’t have any power plants and they won’t have any bridges standing,” Trump told the Journal.

Trump later ⁠posted on ‌social ​media, without mentioning Iran or any other ​details: “Tuesday, 8:00 ‌PM Eastern Time!”

In another post laden with expletives, Trump upped the ante on his demands.

The Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for around a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas supply, has been largely shut down since the war began five weeks ago.

“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran,” he said on his Truth Social platform.

“There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP”

Adding to the pressure, Washington’s ally in the war, Israel, which attacked a major petrochemicals facility on Saturday, was preparing to ‌attack energy facilities next week ‌and was awaiting US approval, a senior ⁠Israeli defence official said. 

However, in the sort of mixed messaging that has baffled supporters and foes alike, let alone financial markets, Trump told Fox News on Sunday ​that Iran was negotiating, with a deal possible by Monday.

Tehran is demanding an end to hostilities and its parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf condemned Trump’s threats, saying he was being misled by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“Your reckless moves are dragging the United States into a living HELL for every single family, and our whole region is going to burn because you insist on following Netanyahu’s commands,” he posted on X.

Trump’s threat follows an intense 48-hour rescue operation for two US airmen inside Iran. 

Thirteen US military personnel have died and hundreds of others have been wounded throughout the Middle East since the US and Israel started operations.

Trump said he ‌will hold a news conference on Monday in the Oval Office alongside the military.

The average US petrol price hit $US4.11 ($A5.95) a gallon on Sunday, according to AAA, ​up from below $US3 ($A4.3) when strikes on Iran began.

The war, which opened with US and Israeli air strikes across Iran on February 28, has spread into Lebanon, where Israel has resumed its campaign against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah. 

Thousands have died, mainly in Iran and Lebanon, where Israeli airvstrikes killed another 11 people on Sunday, according to Lebanon’s ​health ​ministry.

The screenwriters union and Hollywood studios have reached a surprise four-year tentative agreement after roughly three weeks of negotiation. 

The Writers Guild of America West said on X that its negotiating committee unanimously approved a tentative agreement with The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents studios. The alliance confirmed the deal in a separate statement on its website Saturday.

“We look forward to building on this progress as we continue working toward agreements that support long-term industry stability,” read the alliance statement.

The precise terms of the deals were not immediately announced, but it is expected to include several writers’ priorities such as better health care plans and more protections against artificial intelligence. 

The union said on X that the deal protects the writers’ health plan builds on gains from 2023 and “helps address free work challenges.” 

The contract agreement, a year longer than a typical three-year deal, must be approved by the guild’s board and members before it is ratified. 

The surprise agreement came within weeks of negotiations — a stark contrast to the contentious contract dispute three years ago when Hollywood writers went on a historic strike that partially brought the industry to a standstill.

The screenwriters voted almost unanimously to approve that agreement, which provided them with more compensation, length of employment and control of artificial intelligence. The current contract was set to expire in May. 

The studios were also working on new deals with union leaders representing actors and directors, whose contracts are set to expire at the end of June. 

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has congratulated police for the arrest of an alleged crime boss and one of Italy’s most wanted fugitives at a luxury resort. 

Authorities announced the arrest of Roberto Mazzarella, 48, following a raid on Friday at a villa on the Amalfi Coast in southern Italy.

He allegedly tried to use false documents to rent the luxury coastal property.

Meloni, who is on a tour of Gulf states, described Mazzarella’s arrest as “an important blow against the Camorra,” referring to the notorious criminal organisation that originated in Naples. 

“This sends a clear message that the state will not back down,” Meloni said in an online post. 

Mazzarella is wanted in connection with a 2000 fatal shooting at a delicatessen in central Naples.