US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has enthusiastically endorsed Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s bid to serve a fifth straight term after upcoming elections in April.

During a visit to Budapest on Monday, Rubio emphasised the strong personal relationship between the nationalist leader and US President Donald Trump. 

Orbán, who has led Hungary since 2010, is one of Trump’s most vocal supporters in the European Union and has actively curried the US president’s favour leading up to the April 12 vote in which he will face the toughest challenge of his last 16 years in power. 

Rubio was in the Hungarian capital for meetings with Orbán and his government, where he signed an agreement on US-Hungarian civilian nuclear cooperation.

This includes the possible purchase of compact nuclear reactors — known as small modular reactors or SMRs — as well as US-supplied nuclear fuel and spent fuel storage technology.

At a news conference in Budapest, Rubio said US-Hungary relations — which both he and Orbán described as experiencing a “golden age” under Trump — go beyond mere diplomatic cooperation. 

“The prime minister and the president have a very, very close personal relationship and working relationship, and I think it has been beneficial to our two countries,” Rubio said. 

“President Trump is deeply committed to your success because your success is our success.”

Rubio’s stop in Hungary followed a visit to Slovakia on Sunday after he previously attended the Munich Security Conference in Germany. 

Led by eurosceptic populists who oppose support for Ukraine and vocally back Trump, Slovakia and Hungary are both friendly territory for Rubio in his push to shore up energy agreements with both central European countries. 

Widely considered Russian President Vladimir Putin’s most reliable advocate in the EU, Orbán has maintained warm relations with the Kremlin despite its war against Ukraine.

Orbán has also built ties with Trump and his MAGA movement — short for the 2016 Trump campaign slogan “Make America Great Again”.

He has remained firmly committed to purchasing Russian energy despite efforts by the EU to wean off such supplies and received an exemption from US sanctions on Russian energy after a November meeting in the White House with Trump. 

Rubio would not specify on Monday how long that exemption would last as the EU plans to phase out Russian fossil fuels entirely by the end of 2027. 

Apparently trusting that his political and personal affinity with Trump could pay even greater dividends, Orbán and his government have sought to woo the US leader to Hungary before the pivotal April elections — hoping such a high-profile visit and endorsement would push Orbán, who is trailing in most polls, over the finish line. 

On Monday, Orbán told Rubio that his government is ready to host any future trilateral peace summit between the United States, Russia and Ukraine, and that Trump has an “open invitation” to Budapest. 

He also claimed that Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, were seeking to interfere in Hungary’s upcoming elections by criticising Orbán’s opposition to providing weapons or financial aid to Kyiv and threats to block Ukraine’s eventual membership in the EU. 

Many in MAGA and the broader conservative world view Hungary as a shining example of successful conservative nationalism, despite the erosion of its democratic institutions and its status as one of the EU’s poorest countries. 

Orbán has riffed on Trump’s popular slogan and declared that he and his movement seek to “Make Europe Great Again”. 

Australia’s fifth-largest retail bank has set aside millions of dollars to plug risk-management deficiencies after it was pinged by regulators.

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank is dealing with the fallout of a 2025 review that found it had deficient safeguards against money laundering before it self-reported to the banking regulator and AUSTRAC.

On Monday, it reported a 3.3 per cent fall in first-half net cash earnings to $256.4 million as lending fell.

Its performance for the six months ended December also produced a 6.4 per cent rise in statutory net profit to $230.6 million.

The bank’s earnings were driven by deposit growth of 2.3 per cent to almost $74 billion and a more than six per cent reduction in operating expenses.

The value of its residential lending book retreated by 0.1 per cent to $65.1 billion after it exited a legacy mortgage partner business.

“We remain confident that our residential lending book will return to growth over the second half of the financial year,” CEO Richard Fennel said, noting the bank would reach three million customers by the end of the financial year.

While Australian households continued to face cost-of-living headwinds, the bank said its home loan customers were resilient.

More than 45 per cent of those customers are more than a year ahead on their mortgage repayments and 88 per cent are maintaining their financial buffers.

The bank hired consultancy Deloitte in 2025 to conduct an independent review after suspicious activity at one of its branches apparently went undetected for six years until August 1.

The review, revealed in November, found the deficiencies extended beyond a single branch and identified weaknesses with many key aspects of money-laundering and counter-terrorism financing risk management.

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority later told the bank it must hold $50 million in additional risk capital and investigate the extent of the issues in its operations.

AUSTRAC is continuing an enforcement investigation to examine whether Bendigo has complied with its obligations under anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorism laws.

Bendigo recently appointed a chief compliance officer and head of financial risk, Steve Blackburn, to lead its response.

“We’ve now received detailed recommendations, actions and a road map from Deloitte, which we’re using to guide our remediation and uplift program with a focus on enhancing our enterprise-wide … risk management, including transaction monitoring,” Mr Fennell told analysts in an earnings call.

Bendigo expects the total cost for up to three years will be $70 million to $90 million, including an initial $15 million to be incurred in the second half of 2025/26.

“We continue to engage proactively with regulators,” Mr Fennell said.

Shares in Bendigo, which will pay an unchanged first-half dividend of 30 cents per share, were down about one per cent to $11.32 in Monday afternoon trading.

Supermarket giant Coles has been accused of artificially increasing prices before reducing them and claiming it as a discount.

Australia’s consumer watchdog is pursuing the chain through the Federal Court for allegedly misleading consumers with its “down down, prices are down” campaign.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s case against Coles began on Monday, with its lawyers accusing the company of using “utterly misleading” prices.

With a “jingle that sticks in one’s ear longer than is healthy”, the ACCC’s barrister alleged Coles’s well-known “down down” marketing campaign had deliberately misled its customers.

“Why on earth are you telling your customers that your prices are going down, when they’re not?” the commission’s barrister Garry Rich SC told the court.

“The particular promotion they chose was a promotion that hinges on convincing customers that the price of this product has gone down.

“An utterly inappropriate promotional mechanic to use in circumstances where everyone within Coles knows the price is going up.”

He opened the hearing using the example of a 1.2kg can of Nature’s Gift adult wet dog food, which he said was sold for $4 from April 2022 to February 2023.

Mr Rich claimed Coles had increased the price of the product to $6 for a week, before it was sold as reduced to $4.50.

“Coles’s statement was utterly misleading,” he said.

“Coles had increased its price to $6 just seven days before the promotion and for 296 days before that the price was $4.”

Justice Michael O’Bryan queried whether the reason the price rose was due to the supplier increasing its cost. 

Mr Rich said consumers would not know this information and it was misleading to claim the later price was discounted.

Using a giant red thumb, the “down down” campaign began in 2010 and claimed prices on everyday household products had been reduced and were staying low.

Coles said it was helping Australians keep their grocery costs down as part of its commitment to lower the cost of living, Mr Rich said.

However, in reality Coles allegedly misled customers on prices for 245 similar products, including toothpaste, soft drink, cheese, shampoo, band-aids and laundry powder.

“You’re not lowering the cost of living, you’re not driving prices down, in circumstances of the kind we have here,” he said.

Coles is fighting all allegations brought by the ACCC as the hearing continues.

Mobile phone, computer, video game and small appliance sales have pushed up the profit for electronics giant JB Hi-Fi, which recorded more than $6 billion in sales over six months.

But the company says it remains concerned about future earnings due to a high level of uncertainty in the retail market. 

The company released its half-yearly results to the Australian stock exchange on Monday, revealing sales rose 7.3 per cent during the period to deliver the company a net profit of $305.8 million. 

The firm will issue shareholders a dividend of $2.10, up by more than 23 per cent after it raised its payout ratio. 

JB Hi-Fi’s Australian operations represented the biggest share of the company’s revenue, rising 6.3 per cent between July and December to reach $4.12 billion. 

Continued high demand for consumer electronics, such as smartphones and fitness gadgets, drove the increase, and online sales rose by 11.2 per cent to make up 18.4 per cent of all sales. 

Appliance sales, led by cooking, refrigeration, laundry and floor care devices, boosted revenue for The Good Guys by 4.1 per cent, the company revealed, to reach $1.58 billion.  

Sales at JB Hi-Fi’s New Zealand operations also rose by 32.6 per cent to reach $NZD268.6 million, although sales growth at recently acquired home appliance company e&s fell by 4.6 per cent. 

The results built on momentum created during the previous financial year, JB Hi-Fi chief executive Nick Wells said, but the company remained concerned about retail spending trends in a tight economy. 

“Whilst we are pleased to see sales growth continue in January in JB Hi-Fi and The Good Guys, cycling strong sales in the prior year, we remain cautious given the uncertainty in the retail market and the continued competitive activity,” he said. 

“We are grateful to our over 16,000 team members whose continued focus on our customers and ability to adapt and respond has helped to deliver another strong half-year result.”

The company also revealed it opened four new JB Hi-Fi stores in Australia and closed one during the 2026 financial year, and opened three new stores and relocated one in New Zealand. 

Australian retail spending rose by 4.8 per cent in December 2026 compared to the previous year, according to figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, but were down by 0.4 per cent compared to November. 

A premium wine maker, whose portfolio includes the prestigious Penfolds brand, has plunged into the red after it was forced to swallow one-off hits to its bottom line.

Treasury Wine Estates on Monday reported a first-half bottom-line net loss of $649.4 million, against a net profit of $220.9 million in the previous corresponding period.

The statutory result reflected a post-tax loss of $751 million, due to an impairment related to its US assets.

Stripping out that impact, its interim net profit was $128.5 million, down 46.3 per cent.

However, Treasury Wine’s underlying result – earnings before interest and tax, SGARA and material items – was $236.4 million, which was just above its guidance of $225 million to $235 million, albeit a fall of almost 40 per cent.

The underlying result reflected the ongoing impact of trends in its US and China markets, including the restriction of shipments due to parallel import activity in China.

“TWE has commenced strategic action to maintain brand strength and healthy sales channels across key markets, with reducing customer inventory holdings in the US and China as a priority,” it said in a statement.

The group expects its second half underlying earnings for 20205/26 to be higher than the first half, driven by improved momentum in its California business.

Treasury Wine booked sales of $1.3 billion for the first half, down 16 per cent on the prior corresponding period.

A global financial body has urged the federal government to implement tax reform as Australia’s economy manages a “soft landing”.

In its latest report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) praised the handling of Australia’s economy during difficult conditions as inflation pressures return.

“Executive directors welcomed Australia’s progress toward a soft landing and internal balance,” the report said.

“They commend Australia’s robust institutions, flexible markets, agile policy toolkit and flexible exchange rate, which position the country to manage external risks from trade policy uncertainties and tighter global financial conditions.”

The report came after an uptick in inflation, which led the Reserve Bank to hike interest rates.

The IMF urged the federal government to find other methods to improve the fiscal situation.

“(Directors) encouraged comprehensive tax and expenditure reforms, while protecting and prioritising infrastructure investments to enhance productivity and  support growth,” the report said.

“Directors highlighted the need for a holistic strategy to address housing supply constraints, emphasising implementation of supply-boosting measures and tax reforms.”

The fund also called for an increase in the 10 per cent rate of GST, lowering the company tax rate and increasing taxes on resources.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers is expected to announce a reduction of the 50 per cent concession for capital gains tax in the May federal budget.

However, the treasurer said the government had not changed plans on the tax discount.

“We know there are intergenerational issues in our economy and in our budget. We’re dealing with them in other ways,” he told ABC radio on Monday.

Dr Chalmers said the fund’s report was an indication the federal budget was heading in the right direction despite global headwinds.

“The IMF’s report shows that our economic agenda with cost-of-living relief, budget repair, and economic reform is the right approach,” he said in a statement.

“The IMF has described the government’s reform agenda as ‘bold’ and recognised our efforts across multiple fronts.”

The report also called for better ties between the federal government and states and territories.

“Directors also recommended improved fiscal co-ordination across the federation and regular monitoring of sub-national fiscal positions,” the report said.

Despite the praise in the fund’s report, Dr Chalmers said more work needed to be done.

“There are some ideas in these reports that we agree with, some that we don’t, that we won’t be picking up and running with,” Dr Chalmers told ABC radio.

“But overwhelmingly, this IMF report was a very positive report about Australia and about the government’s economic plan.”

Australia’s biggest steelmaker has reported a big jump in interim profit weeks after it rejected a takeover bid.

BlueScope Steel’s bottom-line net profit for the first half of 2025/26 came in at $390.8 million, up 118 per cent from $179.1 million in the previous corresponding period.

The result was underpinned by a four per cent lift in sales revenue to $8.2 billion, setting the group up for an 81 per cent increase in underlying earnings before interest and tax to $557.5 million.

New chief executive Tania Archibald, who on Monday is presenting her first set of results, said BlueScope saw high volumes across its key markets.

“This result is a clear demonstration of the strength and diversity of our portfolio during a period of sustained low Asian steel spreads,” she said in a statement.

“BlueScope is approaching an inflection point.

“The current $2 billion investment program is entering the final phase and the company is poised to deliver materially stronger cash flows. As the investment phase ramps down, the delivery phase ramps up.”

BlueScope owns the key Port Kembla steelworks in southern NSW and the North Star operation in the US, which uses scrap to produce hot-rolled steel at low cost, and has assets in New Zealand and Asia.

In January, the company rejected a $13.2 billion approach from the Stokes family-controlled SGH and Steel Dynamics of the US, which at the time equated to $30 a share.

The would-be predators later signalled their offer had effectively fallen to $29 per share after BlueScope announced it would hand back $438 million to shareholders.

SGH chief executive Ryan Stokes recently said the proposal was full and fair, although he was comfortable about moving on if BlueScope shareholders didn’t see it that way.

BlueScope is forecasting its second-half underlying earnings before interest and tax to be between $620 million and $700 million – an improvement on the first half.

It declared a dividend for the six months ended December 31 of 65 cents per share.

BlueScope shares ended Friday at $29.16.

Israel’s cabinet has approved further measures to tighten Israel’s control over the occupied West Bank and make it easier for settlers to buy land, in ‌a move Palestinians called “a de facto annexation”.

The West Bank is among the territories that the Palestinians seek for ‌a future independent state. 

Much of it is under Israeli military control, with limited Palestinian self-rule in ‌some areas run by the western-backed Palestinian Authority (PA).

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is facing an election later this year, deems the establishment of any Palestinian state a security threat.

His ruling coalition includes many pro-settler members who want Israel to annex the West Bank, land captured in the 1967 Middle East war, ‌to which ‌Israel cites biblical ⁠and historical ties.

Ministers voted in favour of beginning a process of ​land registration for the first time since 1967.

“We are continuing the revolution of settlement and strengthening our hold across all parts of our land,” said Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a far-right member of Netanyahu’s government.

Defence Minister Israel Katz said land registration was a vital security measure designed to ensure control, enforcement, and full freedom of ⁠action for Israel in the area to protect ‌its citizens ​and safeguard national interests.

The cabinet said in a statement that registration was an “appropriate response to illegal land ​registration processes promoted ‌by the Palestinian Authority,” and would end disputes.

The PA presidency rejected the cabinet’s decision, saying ​it constitutes “a de facto annexation of occupied Palestinian territory and a declaration of the commencement of annexation plans aimed at entrenching the occupation through illegal settlement activity”.

US President Donald Trump has ruled out ​Israeli ​annexation of the West Bank, but his ​administration has not sought to curb Israel’s accelerated settlement ‌building, which the Palestinians say denies them a potential state by eating away at its territory.

The United Nations’ highest court said in a non-binding advisory opinion in 2024 that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements there are illegal and should be ended as soon as possible. 

Israel disputes this view, ​saying it has historical and biblical ties to the land.

The land registration adds to a series ​of measures taken earlier this ⁠month to expand control. 

While larger businesses are increasingly seeking credit to fuel growth, some companies are struggling just to keep the lights on, new data shows.

Overall business credit demand grew 2.3 per cent in the three months to December compared to the equivalent 2024 quarter, according to the latest Equifax Business Market Pulse report.

Still, overall business demand was nine per cent lower than four years before, and companies’ ability and willingness to take on debt depended heavily on their size, Equifax commercial general manager Brad Walters said.

“While large-scale businesses appear to be accelerating their credit appetite more quickly, SMEs (small to medium-sized enterprises) appear to be navigating a steadier path upward as they balance growth with external factors such as the pressures of inflation,” he said.

“They don’t always have the means to absorb potential shocks as easily as their larger competitors, so they’re choosing a steadier, more sustainable climb back to the top.”

The gap was clear across multiple sectors but was stark in retail, which recorded a 7.9 per cent surge in credit demand by large enterprises compared to a stagnant 0.7 per cent increase for SMEs.

However, the number of shops forced to close their doors was even more staggering.

“While we have seen strong demand growth among large retailers, the wider sector still shows some signs of pressure, with the past quarter revealing a substantial 64 per cent increase in retail insolvencies year-on-year,” Mr Walters said.

In hospitality, insolvencies remained high overall but slipped nine per cent compared to the equivalent 2024 quarter, but organisations’ relative appetite for credit told a familiar story about growth prospects.

Trade credit demand from large hospitality groups grew almost a fifth over the quarter, while overall credit growth from smaller players was marginal.

In construction, insolvencies remained high and relatively unchanged, while credit data showed bigger builders were confidently buying materials for their project pipelines, driving a 6.6 per cent lift in trade credit.

“During this same time period, small construction businesses appear to be avoiding broad debt, seen by a slight reduction (-0.7 per cent) in overall demand, and only borrowing for specific tools via asset finance (+4 per cent).”

Both Commonwealth Bank and Westpac last week noted they expected credit demand from businesses and households to remain resilient in 2026, despite the nation transitioning into an interest rate rise cycle.

Earlier this month, the central bank hiked rates for the first time in two years and economists believe more increases are on the cards this year, with the next most likely in May.

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor will soon unveil his overhauled front bench as he signals a shift to the right with a focus on issues such as immigration.

The newly elected Liberal leader spent his first few days in the role sketching key priorities after turfing out the party’s first female leader, Sussan Ley, on Friday following weeks of infighting.

Policy announcements are expected to be accompanied by a refreshed front bench, with exiled conservatives and leadership agitators Andrew Hastie and Jacinta Nampijinpa Price poised to return.

“They’re magnificent members of our team,” Mr Taylor said on Sunday of the pair, whose previous frontbench stints ended due to migration-related issues.

While offering few details on his party’s approach, Mr Taylor promised to pursue a stricter immigration policy, repeatedly flagging plans to reduce the nation’s migrant intake and tighten screening.

“The (migration) numbers under Labor have been just extraordinary – way beyond what this country can absorb,” he said.

“Standards have been too low, numbers have been too high and we haven’t explicitly shut the door on people who reject our way of life.”

The Hume MP said he would unveil a full policy “in the coming days”.

Mr Taylor has insisted the coalition is not trying to become “One Nation lite” as it bleeds voter support to the anti-immigration party.

The first poll since Mr Taylor became Liberal leader, published by Nine newspapers on Monday, showed Labor with 32 per cent of the primary vote and One Nation and the coalition tied on 23 per cent.

The Resolve poll of 1800 people conducted between February 8 and Saturday found a Mr Taylor-led coalition three percentage points ahead of a Ms Ley-led opposition.

One Nation recorded primary support of 27 per cent in the latest Newspoll, conducted before Mr Taylor toppled Ms Ley as leader, with the coalition on 18 per cent.

Former senior immigration official Abul Rizvi said Mr Taylor’s pointed tough-on-immigration stance appeared to be directly influenced by One Nation’s rise.

“He reads the polls as closely as anybody,” Mr Rizvi told AAP.

However, he noted strong character requirements already existed for migrants looking to enter Australia and they had only been tightened by anti-hate crime laws introduced after the Bondi terror attack.

Labor had also tightened the previous coalition government’s policies on student and working holiday visas that drove a big increase in migration to Australia in 2022-23, Mr Rizvi said.

“Mr Taylor may have forgotten his government also introduced fee-free student visa applications and fee-free working holiday maker applications,” he said. 

“The Labor government were slow to reverse those policies, but they did get rid of them.”

Mr Taylor and deputy Jane Hume have also repeatedly vowed to offer lower taxes, a renewed focus on housing affordability and the end of an “ideological approach” to energy policies.

Senator Hume said Australia needed to be “open-minded” on nuclear energy if the country was to reduce emissions and make power cheaper.