Australia’s central bank wants to remove surcharge fees on both debit and credit cards in a move it expects would save consumer more than $1 billion.

The Reserve Bank of Australia’s review of merchant card payment costs recommends the fees be scrapped on EFTPOS, Mastercard and Visa card transactions as they don’t help consumers make more efficient payment choices.

Lowering the cap on interchange fees paid by businesses – another recommendation of the paper – as well would save Australian $1.2 billion.

An interchange fee is paid by a business to a customer’s card issuer when a transaction occurs.

The bank’s proposals go further than what the federal government has previously suggested.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers had said the government was prepared to ban fees on debit card transactions from the start of 2026, but the RBA has included credit cards.

Consumers are estimated to pay $1.2 billion in surcharges on payments each year, the equivalent of $60 per card-using adult.

Scrapping surcharges would also mean consumers don’t need to switch between payment methods to try and avoid a fee, the report stated.

RBA Governor Michele Bullock said both consumers and businesses benefited from the proposal as fewer Australians make cash payments.

Customers would avoid paying surcharges, while businesses would no longer be forced to face high costs of accepting card payments.

“We think the time has come to address some of these high costs and inefficiencies in the system,” she said.

“The payments landscape is always evolving, and it’s critically important that we keep pace to ensure it remains safe, competitive and efficient.”

The RBA proposed removing its own prohibition on ‘no-surcharge’ rules to achieve scrapping the fees.

It expected the card networks would then follow by implementing ‘no-surcharge’ rules based on historical experience and arrangements in other jurisdictions.

If that did not occur, the RBA would recommend the federal government legislate to ban surcharge fees.

Lowering the cap on interchange fees by businesses is predicted to benefit small businesses the most, because they often pay higher fees.

The central bank found small businesses would be $185 million better off under the changes, with 90 per cent of them benefiting.

Better transparency achieved by forcing card networks and large acquirers to publish what fees they are charging has also been recommended, in a bid for better competition between the networks.

Ms Bullock predicted the proposals would spark much discussion particularly among businesses that do surcharge, prompting a six-week consultation period on their plan.

Any changes won’t kick in until July 2026.

The US government says it is placing a 17 per cent duty on most fresh Mexican tomatoes after negotiations ended without an agreement to avert the tariff.

The US Commerce Department announced it was withdrawing from a 2019 deal suspending an anti-dumping duty investigation on tomatoes from Mexico.

Anti-dumping duties are calculated to measure the percentage by which Mexican tomatoes have been sold in the United States at “unfair prices,” the Commerce Department said in its statement.

President Donald Trump on Saturday had separately threatened to impose a 30 per cent tariff on imports from Mexico starting on August 1, after weeks of negotiations with the major US trading partner failed to reach a comprehensive trade deal.

Mexico’s agriculture ministry and economy ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Mexico said in April it was confident that it can renew the tomato agreement with the United States. Washington had said in April that it intended to withdraw from the deal.

The agreement, which regulates Mexican tomato exports to the US in a bid to allow US producers to compete fairly, was first struck in 1996 and last renewed in 2019 to avert an anti-dumping investigation and end a tariff dispute.

US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that “for far too long our farmers have been crushed by unfair trade practices that undercut pricing on produce like tomatoes.”

Tim Richards, a professor at the Morrison School of Agribusiness at Arizona State University, said US retail prices for tomatoes will likely rise around 8.5 per cent.

Jacob Jensen, a trade policy analyst at the American Action Forum, a right-leaning policy institute, said areas with a higher reliance on Mexican tomatoes could see price increases close to 10 per cent, since it will be more difficult to replace that supply.

According to official figures, Mexico exported $US3.3 billion ($A5 billion) of tomatoes last year, the vast majority to the US.

with AP

Starbucks is requiring some remote workers to return to its headquarters and increasing the number of days that corporate employees are required to work in an office.

In a letter to employees posted on Monday, Starbucks Chairman and CEO Brian Niccol said corporate employees would need to be in the office four days a week starting in early October instead of three days a week.

The Seattle-based company said that all corporate “people leaders” must be based in either Seattle or Toronto within 12 months.

That is a change from February, when it required vice presidents to relocate to Seattle or Toronto.

Starbucks said individual employees working under those leaders would not be asked to relocate.

But the company said all hiring for future roles and lateral moves will require employees to be based in Seattle or Toronto.

“We are re-establishing our in-office culture because we do our best work when we’re together. We share ideas more effectively, creatively solve hard problems, and move much faster,” Niccol wrote in the letter.

Niccol said affected workers who choose not to relocate will be eligible for a one-time voluntary exit program with a cash payment.

While many workers grew to enjoy working from home during the pandemic, the call for workers to return to offices full-time has been growing over the past year.

Major US employers such as Amazon, AT&T and the federal government have required employees to work in office sites five days per week.

Competition for fully-remote jobs is fierce.

Starbucks spokeswoman Lori Torgerson said she did not have a count of employees who are currently working as “people leaders” or are working remotely.

Starbucks has 16,000 corporate support employees worldwide but that includes coffee roasters and warehouse staff.

Niccol was not required to relocate to Seattle when he was hired to lead Starbucks last August.

Instead, the company said it would help him set up an office near his home in Newport Beach, California, and would give him the use of a corporate jet to commute to Seattle.

Since then, Niccol has bought a home in Seattle and is frequently seen at the company’s headquarters, Torgerson said.

A court will decide whether the federal government has a duty of care to protect First Nations people whose homes and communities are being threatened by the impacts of climate change.

At risk of becoming Australia’s first climate refugees, Uncle Paul Kabai and Uncle Pabai Pabai filed the landmark case against the government in the Federal Court in 2021.

They claim it failed to protect their homelands among the Torres Strait Islands from climate change. 

The uncles are seeking orders from the court that would require the government to take steps to prevent harm to their communities, including cutting greenhouse gas emissions in line with the best available science.

The court, which is due to hand down its decision on Tuesday, heard evidence communities on Boigu and Saibai could have less than 30 years left before their islands become uninhabitable.

The Commonwealth has argued it is not legally required to consider the best available science or the impacts of climate change when setting emissions reduction targets.

“The main reason me and Uncle Pabai put our hands up is Saibai and Boigu are the low-lying islands,” Mr Kabai told AAP.

“They’re only two or three metres above sea level and during monsoon season these two islands they’re flooded.”

But the case is not only about the islands of Saibai and Boigu. 

Mr Kabai said the decision could have impacts for the wider Torres Strait and communities affected by climate disasters such as flooding and bushfires on the mainland as well.

It has been a long journey for the uncles and their supporters, and Mr Kabai has mixed feelings as they approach a decision.

“Some of the people who have been working with us, they have passed, so that will be emotional,” he said.

“But I’m looking forward to it, if we can get a better outcome. Doesn’t matter win or lose, we can have an answer.”

Political differences will bump up against economic opportunities as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese meets his Chinese counterparts in the imposing Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Tuesday’s bilateral meetings with President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and Communist Party Chairman Zhao Leji – the three highest-ranking members of China’s ruling committee – mark the centrepiece of Mr Albanese’s six-day tour of the Middle Kingdom.

President Xi is top dog in China, and the optics of Mr Albanese’s rendezvous with one of the world’s most influential leaders will be powerful.

But it’s his meeting with Premier Li, notionally the head of government in China, that will deliver any tangible agreements from the trip if they occur.

The meetings come as the Chinese-Australian free trade agreement passes its 10th anniversary.

Co-operation between the two nations has increased following a falling out during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mr Albanese will emphasise the potential for further developing business links at a CEO roundtable hosted by the Business Council of Australia on Tuesday evening.

Greater engagement between China and Australia has delivered practical benefits to both nations, building understanding between governments and businesses.

“It enables us to express our differences and to manage them, without our relationship being defined by them,” he will say.

“This is about building stronger ties where our national interests are aligned.”

Dialogue will help the countries work together to address the structural imbalances of global steel supply, maximise the economic opportunities of the global shift to net zero, and provide certainty and confidence for businesses to invest, he will say.

But fundamental political differences limit the extent of economic co-operation.

Mr Albanese is likely to raise Australian concerns over increased Chinese militarism, including Chinese naval exercises off Australian waters, and the detention of Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun.

Beijing’s dissatisfaction over Australia’s plan to tear up a Chinese-owned company’s lease of Darwin Port is also likely to be broached.

An article by a Chinese state media influencer suggested Beijing could restrict Australian imports as retaliation, risking financial blowback for Australian companies.

Business Council of Australia chief executive Bran Black says the two nations’ challenges and opportunities would be best met with dialogue.

“And that’s exactly what this roundtable is about,” he will say at the event.

“Today’s agenda points to the breadth of that shared opportunity: education, smarter agriculture, the green economy and low-carbon transformation.

“But that opportunity is underpinned by the personal connections that we, collectively and personally, have the privilege to establish, re-establish, confirm and enhance today.”

Expanding the free trade agreement further into the services and investment sectors will be high on the agenda of the roundtable, as will exploring co-operation in education, smart agriculture, health and aged care.

Green energy and low-carbon steel will once again be a hot topic after it formed the focus of a roundtable between Australian iron ore miners and Chinese steelmakers in Shanghai.

The probe into the crash of an Air India plane in Ahmedabad is far from over and it is unwise to jump to any premature conclusions, airline CEO Campbell Wilson says in an internal memo after the release of a preliminary report by investigators.

The memo, reviewed by Reuters, comes after the report depicted confusion in the cockpit shortly before the crash of the Boeing Dreamliner in June that killed 260 people. 

It said the plane’s engine fuel cut-off switches flipped almost simultaneously and starved the engines of fuel.

“The release of the preliminary report marked the point at which we, along with the world, began receiving additional details about what took place. Unsurprisingly, it provided both greater clarity and opened additional questions,” the memo said.

Wilson added: “The preliminary report identified no cause nor made any recommendations, so I urge everyone to avoid drawing premature conclusions as the investigation is far from over.”

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner bound for London from the Indian city of Ahmedabad began to lose thrust and sink shortly after take-off, according to the report released by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).

The memo said the preliminary report found no mechanical or maintenance faults and that all required maintenance had been carried out.

The preliminary report, released on Saturday, suggested no immediate action for Boeing or GE, whose engines were fitted on to the aircraft.

The AAIB, an office under India’s civil aviation ministry, is leading the probe into the crash, which killed all but one of the 242 people on board and 19 others on the ground.

Air India has come under heightened scrutiny on multiple fronts following the crash.

On July 4, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency said it would investigate budget unit Air India Express, after a Reuters report revealed the airline failed to promptly replace engine parts on an Airbus A320 as mandated, and falsified records to indicate compliance.

ALPA India, which represents Indian pilots at the Montreal-based International Federation of Air Line Pilots Associations, rejected the presumption of pilot error in the Ahmedabad crash and called for a “fair, fact-based inquiry”.

“The pilots body must now be made part of the probe, at least as observers,” ALPA India President Sam Thomas told Reuters on Sunday.

The European Union has already prepared a list of tariffs worth 21 billion euros ($A37 billion) on US goods if the two sides fail to reach a trade deal, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani says.

President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to impose a 30 per cent tariff on imports from Mexico and the EU starting on August 1 after weeks of negotiations with major US trading partners failed to reach a comprehensive deal.

Tajani told daily newspaper Il Messaggero that to help the euro zone economy the European Central Bank should consider a new “quantitative easing” bond-buying-program, and more interest rate cuts.

The European Union said on Sunday it would extend its suspension of countermeasures to US tariffs until early August and continue to press for a negotiated settlement.

Tajani said the 21-billion-euro package of tariffs the EU had already prepared could be followed by a second set if a deal with the US proved impossible.

He said, however, he was confident that progress could be made in negotiations.

“Tariffs hurt every one, starting with the United States,” he said.

“If stock markets fall that puts at risk the pensions and the savings of the Americans.”

He said the goal should be “zero tariffs” and an open market among Canada, the United States, Mexico and Europe.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday he would work intensively with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to resolve the escalating trade war with the United States.

European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic said on Monday that Washington and Brussels were approaching a positive outcome for both sides, and warned that a 30 per cent tariff would practically eliminate trade.

Australia and China must work together on green steel, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says, but political tensions threaten to get in the way.

Mr Albanese urged industry leaders from both nations to work together in developing low-carbon steel production at a roundtable of Australian iron ore producers and Chinese steelmakers in Shanghai on Monday.

Growing trade and business ties is the focus of the prime minister’s six-day tour of China, but tensions over military build-up, human rights and foreign investment remain distractions.

Speaking to a room of leaders from Australian mining giants Rio Tinto, BHP, Fortescue and Hancock, as well as Chinese steelmakers, Mr Albanese said both countries had major stakes in developing green steel.

“We want Australian iron ore to be part of the solution when it comes to lowering emissions and we understand that China wants that too, and that was reiterated today,” Mr Albanese told reporters.

“These discussions were an important step forward between our two nations.”

It’s hard to overstate the Australian economy’s dependence on the Chinese iron ore trade.

China is by far Australia’s largest export destination and iron ore is easily the largest component.

In 2024, Australia shipped $104.8 billion worth of the ferrous metal to China – about a sixth of the total value of exports to all trading partners.

Fortescue executive chairman Andrew Forrest said a bilateral agreement between China and Australia would generate a jobs boom in green iron and steel, which he forecasts would create hundreds of thousands of new jobs.

But he acknowledged military tensions were a “distraction” in the relationship.

“To really build up the strength of the bilateral relationship you need those strong friendships, that very real element of business: trust between each other,” Dr Forrest said.

“And yes, security becomes a distraction, but for us we’re head down, tail up, strengthening that bilateral relationship in the best interests of Australian employment for every Australian.”

Security tensions bubbled to the surface at the weekend after revelations US Pentagon strategist Elbridge Colby had been pressing Australian and Japanese officials over what role they would play in a potential conflict with China over Taiwan.

It highlights the delicate balance awaiting Mr Albanese ahead of bilateral discussions with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Tuesday.

The prime minister insisted he was not being distracted by the hawkish talk from his AUKUS partner, but security concerns undoubtedly cloud Australia’s economic engagement with China.

The Australian government’s plan to tear up a Chinese-owned company’s lease of Darwin Port over shifting geopolitical tensions will be broached as a point of contention in Mr Albanese’s discussions.

He insists economic co-operation can flourish despite ideological differences, but there’s no hiding the fact the two are intrinsically linked.

Chinese foreign direct investment in Australia has plummeted over the past decade amid tighter regulatory scrutiny from the federal government.

But Chinese capital will be crucial to building the capacity to produce green steel at scale.

“We, of course, as a country, depend upon foreign capital, and we welcome investment,” Mr Albanese said.

“We are a country that run an open economy.”

Before flying to Beijing, the prime minister delivered a speech to a high-level business lunch at the Peace Hotel.

Australian red meat, rock lobster and red wine were served at the lunch, three menu items that have found renewed favour in China after Beijing lifted trade sanctions on more than $20 billion worth of Australian imports.

Mr Albanese reiterated the importance of interpersonal relationships between Australian and Chinese business leaders and ongoing dialogue in maintaining positive relations.

“There is no fixed model for a stabilised relationship,” Mr Albanese said.

“Our job is to make sure that we manage our relationship so that we can contribute to regional and global peace and prosperity.”

Bitcoin has crossed the $US120,000 level for the first time, marking a milestone for the world’s largest cryptocurrency as investors bet on long-sought policy wins for the industry this week.

Bitcoin scaled a record high of $US121,207.55 ($A184,489.93) in the Asian session on Monday, before pulling back slightly to last trade 1.6 per cent higher at $US121,015.42 ($A184,197.49).

Starting on Monday, the US House of Representatives will debate a series of bills to provide the digital asset industry with the nation’s regulatory framework it has long demanded.

Those demands have resonated with US President Donald Trump, who has called himself the “crypto president” and urged policymakers to revamp rules in favour of the industry.

“It’s riding a number of tailwinds at the moment,” said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore, citing strong institutional demand, expectations of further gains and support from Trump as reasons for the bullishness.

“It’s been a very, very, strong move over the past six or seven days and it’s hard to see where it stops now; it looks like it can easily have a look at the $US125,000 ($A190,262) level,” he said.

The surge in bitcoin, which is up 29 per cent for the year so far, has sparked a broader rally across other cryptocurrencies over the past few sessions even in the face of Trump’s chaotic tariffs.

Ether, the second-largest token, scaled a more than five-month top of $US3,050.90 ($A4,643.77), while XRP and Solana gained about three per cent each.

The sector’s total market value has swelled to about $US3.78 trillion ($A5.75) trillion, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Earlier this month, Washington declared the week of July 14 as “crypto week”, where members of Congress are set to vote on the Genius Act, the Clarity Act, and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act.

The most significant bill is the Genius Act, which would create federal rules for stablecoins.

Elsewhere, prices of crypto-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in Hong Kong similarly surged.

Spot bitcoin ETFs launched by China AMC, Harvest and Bosera all scaled record highs, while the three ether ETFs managed by the asset managers were up roughly two per cent each.

Australian exporters could cash in on the US market as their major competitors are slapped with higher tariffs.

Some of America’s most important trading partners have had their confidence shaken after President Donald Trump threatened a slew of increased tariffs over the weekend.

From August 1, goods from Brazil would be subject to a 50 per cent tariff – up from 10 per cent – while items from the European Union would be hit with a 30 per cent levy – up from the pre-announced 20 per cent rate.

But Australia is yet to receive notice of a new tariff rate, meaning most products sent to the US remain at the baseline 10 per cent.

“It will give us, in some sense, an unfair playing advantage,” Monash University economics lecturer Isaac Gross told AAP.

Australia and Brazil are two of the biggest beef exporters to the US, so if the South American nation’s exports have a higher tariff they will become more expensive for American consumers, which could push them towards Australian goods and increase trade.

Similarly, Australia competes with the European Union on wine exports to the US and an increased levy on alcohol from Italy or France could fuel American demand.

However, Australian exports will still be less competitive than homegrown US products, which are not subject to a tariff.

“The 10 per cent tariff will hurt us a little bit, but if the 50 per cent or the 30 per cent tariff on other companies hurts them even more, we may end up ahead,” Dr Gross said.

But all this depends on whether the US president implements his tariffs in line with his announcements.

The EU continues to press for further tariff negotiations and it is unclear whether Australia will be spared a letter from the US president.

Mr Trump has also become increasingly fickle with his tariffs and has walked them back on multiple occasions when other nations have threatened retaliatory action after the markets’ response.

This uncertainty has dragged on international trade with the US and could delay investment in the long term, Dr Gross said.

There has been no change to US tariffs on Australian goods, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said, and the government continues to engage with Mr Trump’s administration.

“Every week brings new developments, new uncertainties, and over the weekend, we saw more of that,” the treasurer told reporters in Canberra on Monday.

“We’ll work our way through the consequences of these sorts of announcements, which come from time to time.”