The President’s ship was anchored in the Suez Canal, en route to Washington D.C. from the Yalta Conference, and he prepared to quietly meet Ibn Saud, King of the newly-unified Saudi Arabia, for the first time.

King Saud had left Jeddah days earlier on an American naval vessel, alongside a group of princes, diplomats, attendants, and ‘nine miscellaneous slaves,’ according to a manifest stored at East Carolina University’s Joyner Library. And President Roosevelt, onboard the U.S.S Quincy, did not appear to have a problem with that.

Roosevelt and Saud bonded over injuries and their love of farming, disagreed over Zionism, and promised to remain friends, Col. William Eddy – the meeting organiser – described in his 1954 book, FDR Meets Ibn Saud.

“[The President was] a charming host, witty conversationalist, with the spark and light in his eyes and that gracious smile [that won people over,]” Eddy said. “With Ibn Saud, [Roosevelt] was his very best,” Eddy added.

The President, less than two months away from death, seemed to regard Saud’s slaves as a kind of exotic curiosity. “[The] whole party was a scream,” he later wrote about the King’s partly enslaved entourage, in a letter to his cousin, according to the Jerusalem Post.

Roosevelt was neither incapable of confrontation nor blind to labour exploitation. Over the 1930s, he backed Labor Secretary Frances Perkins’ ground-breaking labour organising and safety reforms, and excoriated American business leaders.

“[Organised corporate interests] are unanimous in their hate for me—and I welcome their hatred. I should like to have it said of my first Administration that in it the forces of selfishness and of lust for power met their match,” he said at a 1936 rally.

But Roosevelt’s liberalism, even in its purest, rarely-achieved form, ended at the borders of the United States. And in doing so, it empowered reactionaries and blunted parts of his domestic agenda by letting the radical right avoid having to oppose universal respect for human dignity.

Throughout the 1930s and 1940s – having accepted that respecting human dignity is conditional, on a ship with Ibn Saud and at home – Roosevelt failed at the macabre exercise of defining those worthy of protection.

He began his Presidency on the back foot, trying, and often failing, to explain why specific groups deserved to be treated with basic respect. He was able to mount effective majoritarian defences of the American working class, but failed to advance similar protections for Black Americans and Americans of Mexican and Japanese ancestry.

In 1934, while working to pass the Social Security Act, Roosevelt met with NAACP leader Walter White at the White House to discuss an early anti-lynching bill. White pushed the President on the issue, and Roosevelt appeared flustered. But the discussion did not yield much.

Roosevelt was not fond of lynchings, having described them as vile murders and rejections of the commandment that ‘Thou shalt not kill,’ in a 1933 talk to the Federal Council of Churches in America. “We do not excuse those in high places or in low who condone lynch law,” he told the group.

But he could not bring himself to end the practice. “If I come out for the anti-lynching bill now, [opponents] will block every bill I ask Congress to pass [to] keep America from collapsing. I just can’t take the risk,” he reportedly told White, according to former F.D.R Library Director Paul Sparrow.

To Roosevelt, lynchings were moral affronts that he was powerless to do anything about. He may have been right, but that was partly his own fault. The moment the President – like other liberals – accepted that human dignity was not universal, political fights became fights about whose humanity mattered.

They became fights that ethnonationalists, authoritarians, and religious extremists – those that Reinhold Niebuhr (secularly) described as the ‘children of darkness,’ the moral cynics among us – are entirely capable of winning.

Once liberals accept that human dignity is conditional, the ‘children of darkness’ need simply to prey on the anxieties, economic hardships, and, indeed, prejudices of decent voters to wind back progress. That is substantially easier than pushing back against most people’s innate, moral intuition that dignity is universal.

President Roosevelt’s wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, understood this better than he did. While he prepared to break bread with King Saud and his slaves, the First Lady was in Washington D.C, thinking about Abraham Lincoln.

“Today, when we face problems which would come close to his heart, I think the knowledge of his firm belief in the dignity of the human being is something from which many of us draw strength and inspiration,” she wrote in a 13 February column, celebrating Lincoln’s birthday.

During the President’s meeting, she went further. “[Global peace] cannot be [achieved], however, unless the people of the nations involved see to it that at home they build the kind of atmosphere in which economic and political freedom is possible,” she wrote on 14 February.

And Eleanor Roosevelt’s support for universal dignity went beyond vague columns. In 1934, she arranged Walter White’s meeting with the President, and likely helped him prepare for it, having been a long-time member of the NAACP.

Roosevelt, in the final decades of her life, also routinely condemned Saudi Arabian slavery – which formally ended on 6 November 1962, one day before her death – as backward and publicly chided King Saud over it.

“To many of us, the King does not seem to have exercised his powers to raise the standard of living of his people, to get rid, at this late date, of all slavery in his kingdom,” she wrote in February 1957.

But despite Eleanor Roosevelt’s best efforts, both in the United Nations and in meetings with her husband’s successors, liberal statesmen continue to follow in President Roosevelt’s footsteps, rather than her own.

Liberal statesmen solemnly trigger oil shocks in solidarity with the victims of Bucha and Lviv, but their willingness to act does not seem to extend quite as far as Al Fashir, Tigray, or Khan Younis. They preach the beauty of pluralism in the morning, and then proceed to fete religious autocrats and hold umbrellas over genocidal presidents at noon.

There is a temptation on the part of governing liberals to compartmentalise responses to foreign atrocities, and wipe them away as wholly unrelated to domestic cohesion. But this ignores both the fact that voters live in global information environments and maintain the capacity to infer principles from actions.

When politicians alternatively defend and disregard foreign atrocities, which are often visible to their voters, they do the work of would-be authoritarians at home. They tell their electorates that human dignity is not universal, that it can be subordinated to economic and political interests.

They can try to explain why human dignity should be extended to everyone at home, but will face the same challenges that Roosevelt did. Reactionary politicians can appeal to the worst instincts of decent voters once liberal politicians give up on universalism.

When liberals resurrect President Roosevelt’s worst instincts – which he displayed on a ship in early 1945 – they should not expect to avert his historic failures.

By Avinash Govind

But Tomago Aluminium – a Rio Tinto-led joint venture – will also pay the two Governments when aluminium prices are high, the NSW Government and Federal Government said in a joint statement on 13 August.

“Tomago Aluminium has made it clear: to remain competitive and secure its future, the smelter needs a reliable and affordable supply of renewable energy,” Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen said.

The joint venture expects to sign a decade-long, Government-backed renewable power deal in late 2028, when its current non-renewable power deal expires, it said.

Tomago’s power deal will be subsidised and support close to 3 GW of renewable energy projects. “Making sure that we can deliver a power purchasing agreement here supported by the two Governments … will mean more investment,” Federal Industry Minister Tim Ayres told the ABC.

The NSW Government will contribute up to A$1.225 billion of subsidies over a decade, with the Federal Government covering the rest, the two Governments said. Tomago has also agreed to spend A$1.1 billion on smelter performance improvements, energy management projects, and decarbonisation initiatives, the joint venture said.

Tomago – which consumes 10% of New South Wales’ power supply – can cut its power use by 63% within minutes if needed.

Utilities plan to supply Tomago with entirely renewable energy from 2033 under the Government-backed deal, Rio Tinto said. The joint venture’s deal will cut its combined direct and power-related CO2-equivalent emissions by 7.1 million tonnes per year, Rio Tinto added.

The Federal Government’s Tomago subsidies come on the back of a string of similar smelter aid packages.

The Government has financially supported Glencore’s Mount Isa copper smelter, Rio Tinto’s Boyne aluminium smelter, GFG’s now-shuttered Liberty Bell Bay ferro-manganese smelter, and Nyrstar’s Tasmanian and South Australian zinc and lead smelters since the start of 2025.

Soon after the Federal Government announced its support for Tomago, the Tasmanian Government called on it to support Rio Tinto’s Bell Bay aluminium smelter with power subsidies.

“[The Federal Government] must explain why a [Tomago] deserves extraordinary support while Bell Bay is expected to go it alone,” Tasmanian Industry Minister Felix Ellis said. “Just as Tomago is too important to lose, Bell Bay is also too important to ignore,” Ellis added.

By Avinash Govind

SGX’s contract launch timeline is subject to regulatory processes, the exchange told some traders on 5 August. It plans to brief market participants on the contract before launch, Lithos understands.

SGX did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Market participants will be able to trade SGX’s second-tier coking coal futures contracts for up to three calendar years, according to draft specifications seen by Lithos. The contracts will financially settle against McCloskey’s average daily MCC3 Australian FOB second-tier HCC index price in expiring months.

McCloskey’s index price tracks the value of lower-grade HCC shipments leaving East Coast Australian ports, according to the price reporting agency.

Producers shipped 147 million tonnes of coking coal out of Australia in 2025, down 3.9% from 2024, data from Australia’s Office of the Chief Economist (OCE) show. The OCE expects Australian producers to export 154 million tonnes of coking coal in 2026.

SGX’s second-tier coking coal futures contract will form part of its ‘virtual steel mill,’ a series of financially-settled iron ore, coal, and freight derivatives that help traders manage market risks. The exchange already offers Australian premium coking coal futures and swaps contracts as part of its ‘virtual steel mill.’

September-dated SGX TSI FOB Australia premium coking coal futures contracts last settled at $224/tonne on 11 August, down from $233.50/tonne on 10 July, data from SGX show.

SGX’s futures contract outreach comes less than two months after SGX Head of Commodity Derivatives Tan Tee Yong told Reuters that the exchange planned to launch new coking coal and steel futures.

By Avinash Govind

“[But] inflation remains too high, and the Board remains concerned about the upside risk to the inflation outlook,” RBA Governor Michele Bullock told journalists on 11 August. The RBA expects Australia’s annual consumer inflation rate to fall from 3.8% to 2.6% between June 2026 and December 2027, data from its Monetary Policy Statement show.

The RBA’s baseline inflation forecast assumes that Brent crude oil prices will fall from $94.90/barrel to $81.20/barrel over June-December 2026. December-dated Brent crude oil futures last traded at $83.84/barrel on 11 August, data from the Intercontinental Exchange show.

“[The RBA’s Monetary Policy] Board did not discuss a rate cut at its [August] meeting. It only discussed a raise and a stay,” Bullock said. “The Board is quite firm that if it needs to raise interest rates, if it looks like inflation is remaining higher than desirable … then [it] is prepared to raise [rates],” Bullock added.

“The Board is determined to ensure that expectations of higher inflation do not [become] embedded in price and wage-setting decisions,” Bullock said.

Australian consumers’ two-year forward inflation expectations rose from 5.5% to 5.7% over the week to 9 August, data from the ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence report indicate. But their four-week moving average expectations remained steady at 5.7%, ANZ-Roy Morgan data show.

Australian financial conditions have tightened, and labour market conditions have loosened, in recent months because of three cash rate target increases early in 2026, the RBA said. New housing loans have also declined, likely because of cash rate target rises and investment-related tax changes.

By Avinash Govind

The Government plans to consult with businesses before passing work-from-home legislation. “I’ve heard feedback from the business community that some common sense changes can make this policy work better,” Carroll said.

“I support Victorians’ right to work from home, and I will work closely with workers and the business community to protect it,” Carroll added.

Victoria’s Legislative Assembly – the state’s lower house of Parliament – passed a Government-backed work-from-home bill on 30 July. But the Government has not progressed the bill through Victoria’s upper house of Parliament, the Legislative Council.

The Business Council of Australia (BCA) has welcomed the Government’s delay, but wants it to scrap its work-from-home plans. “Our position remains clear: [work-from-home] legislation is unnecessary and should be scrapped,” BCA Chief Executive Bran Black said.

“[Premier Carroll] has also made a commitment to grow the economy and cut red tape, which we strongly [support. However,] this legislation takes Victoria in the opposite direction,” Black added.

Multiple labour unions have backed the Victorian Government’s work-from-home plans. “A lot of Victorians in all sorts of industries cannot do their work from home - but all Victorians are going to benefit from giving a choice to those who can,” Victorian Trades Hall Council Secretary Luke Hilakari said last year.

“Since [2020,] thousands of workers have had to argue with their boss about keeping [work-from-home] arrangements,” Hilakari added.

The Government’s work-from-home legislation will take effect after the 2026 Victorian state election on 28 November. Carroll’s Labor Party and the Victorian Liberal-National Party (LNP) Coalition are currently tied at 26% support on a first-preference basis, according to a recent Roy Morgan opinion poll.

But the LNP Coalition leads Labor by 2% points on a two-party-preferred basis, data from Roy Morgan show.

By Avinash Govind

The company expects to sell its lower-emission steel from later this year, it said on 10 August.

New Zealand Steel replaced Glenbrook’s oxygen furnace and two of its coal-fuelled kilns with an EAF over two years, it added. The company expects to halve its coal use and cut its annual greenhouse gas emissions by up to one million tonnes of CO2-equivalent by using its EAF to process scrap steel.

It has signed long-term scrap steel supply deals with Sims and GMS – a pair of local metal recycling firms – to support EAF-based steel production, the company said.

“[New Zealand Steel] has been able to undertake [its furnace] transition within a fully operational steelworks, continuing to produce the usual 650,000 tonnes of steel [over two years] to ensure uninterrupted supply to [customers],” BlueScope Chief Executive Australia and New Zealand Robin Davies said.

The New Zealand Government financially supported New Zealand Steel’s EAF transition through its now-defunct Government Investment in Decarbonising Industry (GIDI) fund. It spent NZ$140 million on the NZ$300 million project, according to New Zealand Steel.

Between 2021 and 2023, the Government co-invested NZ$327 million in 73 projects through GIDI, data from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) show. It expects the projects to cut New Zealand’s annual greenhouse gas emissions by 1.5 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent, EECA data show.

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Italian manufacturer Danieli built New Zealand Steel’s EAF, both companies said in 2023.

Danieli plans to build similar furnaces in Australia over the next few years. It has agreed to supply electric furnace technology to Queensland-based Alter Steel and New South Wales-based Greensteel Australia, both of whom expect to produce electric furnace-based steel from 2028.

By Avinash Govind

SEM needs to meet financial, legal, and technical requirements before accessing the loan facility, the DoW said on 8 August. The company will use the loan facility to develop a scandium value chain, including a mine and manufacturing capabilities, the DoW added.

SEM plans to produce 60 tonnes per year of scandium oxide at Syerston from July-December 2028, before eventually increasing production to 180 tonnes per year of scandium oxide. Syerston will be the world’s only dedicated scandium mine when it opens.

Companies produce scandium as a metal processing by-product, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The world’s scandium oxide capacity exceeded 90 tonnes per year in 2025, the USGS estimated in its 2026 scandium summary.

Scandium – which manufacturers use to strengthen alloys and produce fuel cells – traded at $640/kg in 2025, down from $660/kg – 670/kg in 2024 and $890/kg – $1000/kg in 2021, data from the USGS’ summary show.

DoW’s support for SEM comes just over one month after the NSW Government agreed to let the company defer mineral royalties linked to Syerston for five years upon launch. NSW’s royalty deferral scheme is meant to ease cash-flow challenges for project developers, the Government said on 4 July.

DoW’s support also comes alongside broader US Government support for Australian critical mineral developers. In October 2025, the US Export-Import Bank (EXIM) and Export Finance Australia jointly expressed interest in funding six critical mineral developers, including SEM. Both agencies issued non-binding letters of intent to the companies.

“By fostering collaboration between American and Australian industry, EXIM is helping deliver on the [Donald Trump’s] vision to secure the critical resources that power America’s economy and national security,” EXIM Chair John Jovanovic said at the time.

By Avinash Govind

CBPU launched two days of rolling work stoppages early on 8 August, according to the Western Mine Workers Alliance, a CBPU member. Union members previously halted work for eight hours on 16 July.

All of BHP’s maintenance staff, and all but two of its production staff, at Port Hedland are on strike, Lithos has learned. The company’s non-striking production staff are operating three ship loaders at a reduced capacity.

“[But] vessels are continuing to be loaded with scheduled departures subject to usual port planning and tides,” a BHP spokesperson told Lithos. “With around 1200 people on site across [the] port facility, our priority is always continuing safe and productive operations,” the spokesperson added.

Four ships loaded with BHP ore left Port Hedland between 8 August and early 9 August, and another is set to leave the port late on 9 August. BHP workers expect to load up to seven ships over 8-9 August.

CBPU workers can launch an unlimited number of consecutive work stoppages under strike authorisations passed in June-July. Some CBPU workers can also launch an unlimited number of partial work bans under authorisations.

BHP and CBPU negotiators will engage in Fair Work Commission-facilitated (FWC) bargaining on 18 August, the company and union confirmed to Lithos. The two groups have met 11 times, but disagree over wage, job classification, employment progression, and working condition proposals. They have made progress in recent meetings, without reaching an agreement.

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BHP has offered CBPU workers wage rises of up to 16%, Lithos understands. It will table an updated contract proposal when it meets with CBPU negotiators on 18 August, a BHP spokesperson said.

“We have made significant progress under the guidance of the [Fair Work] Commission and there is no need for industrial action,” the spokesperson added.

CBPU’s strike does not appear to have impacted iron ore markets. The Singapore Exchange’s August-dated high-grade iron ore cfr China futures index last settled at $94.70/tonne on 7 August – before markets closed for the weekend – down from $95.64/tonne on 6 August.

By Avinash Govind

The fire broke out early on 6 August and burned for hours. “[But it] has been contained and [Aurizon is] continuing to work through site assessments and recovery activities,” Aurizon told Lithos later in the day.

The Aurizon-operated shed stores sulphur that BHP burns to produce sulphuric acid – a solvent used to extract copper metal from ore – at Olympic Dam. In 2009, BHP applied to increase its Olympic Dam sulphur consumption from 800,000 tonnes per year to 1.8 million tonnes per year, as part of a wider project expansion.

BHP imports large volumes of sulphur through Port Adelaide’s Outer Harbor, it said in 2011. It transports sulphur to Olympic Dam – located about 570 kilometres from Port Adelaide – on sealed rail wagons, it added at the time.

The company is supporting Aurizon and Flinders Port, the shed’s owner, as needed, Lithos understands.

BHP produced 221,300 tonnes of refined copper at Olympic Dam over the July 2025 – June 2026 fiscal year, up 3% from 214,000 tonnes in 2024-25, it said in a July operations review. The company achieved a 20-year production record at Olympic Dam in 2025-26, it added.

BHP plans to slightly scale back copper production across its South Australian operations – including Olympic Dam and three other sites – in 2026-27, likely because of an unplanned conveyor belt failure at its Carrapateena mine in July 2026. The company expects the Carrapateena conveyor belt failure to constrain copper production for two months.

BHP has set its South Australian production guidance for 2026-27 at between 290,000 tonnes and 320,00 tonnes of copper, down from 320,700 tonnes in 2025-26, the company said.

BHP’s global copper production fell 3% to 1.95 million tonnes in 2025-26. The company expects to cut its global copper output to between 1.65 million and 1.8 million tonnes in 2026-27, largely because of ore grade declines at its Escondida mine in Chile.

By Avinash Govind

NT EPA’s charges relate to the alleged under-reporting of benzene and toluene between 2019 and 2024, the agency said on 5 August. Ichthys LNG Pty Ltd needs to annually report total emissions to air in tonnes to the NT EPA, the agency added.

NT EPA will not comment further on its case against INPEX because of legal proceedings.

“INPEX acknowledges the summons filed by the [NT EPA] to Ichthys LNG Pty Ltd, and we take this matter very seriously,” INPEX Senior Vice President Corporate Bill Townsend told Lithos on 5 August. “[But] it is inappropriate for INPEX to comment further regarding legal matters,” Townsend added.

“The safety and wellbeing of our people, and the protection of the environment and community through safe operations, remain our highest priorities,” Townsend said.

INPEX generated 556.9 tonnes of benzene emissions and 569.8 tonnes of toluene emissions at Ichthys in the July 2023 – June 2024 fiscal year, the company said in late October 2025. But it initially reported 4.12 tonnes of benzene emissions and 5.05 tonnes of toluene emissions from the plant because of unintentional calculation errors, the company added.

“INPEX assures the community it has not intentionally misreported [its emissions],” the company said. It reported its calculation errors to the NT EPA at the time.

INPEX’s Ichthys LNG plant is also part of the Safeguard Mechanism – Australia’s excess carbon pricing scheme – because INPEX generates more than 100,000 tonnes per year of carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2-e) Scope 1 greenhouse gas emissions at the site.

Under the Safeguard Mechanism, Australia’s Clean Energy Regulator (CER) sets tailored Scope 1 emissions limits for large industrial emitters each year. When producers’ emissions exceed their CER-imposed limits, they surrender tradable carbon credits to cover the excess emissions. But the CER also gives producers tradable carbon credits when their emissions drop below Safeguard Mechanism limits.

INPEX generated 6.26 million tonnes of CO2-e Scope 1 emissions at Ichthys in 2024-25, below the plant’s CER-imposed limit of 6.32 million tonnes of CO2-e emissions. CER has issued INPEX with 67,524 Safeguard Mechanism Credits (SMCs) because it stayed within its 2024-25 Safeguard Mechanism limit.

By Avinash Govind

The joint venture plans to produce 200,000 tonnes of coal each year for local, existing customers at a newly consented mine pit, Bathurst Resources said. It will sell the coal to existing customers under long-term contracts that are under negotiation.

BT Mining sells Maramarua coal to Genesis Energy, New Zealand Steel, Open Country Dairy, and Fonterra, Bathurst Resources’ General Manager for Domestic Operations, Craig Pilcher, told the Waikato District Council in 2020.

The joint venture produced 163,000 tonnes of coal at Maramarua in the July 2024 – June 2025 fiscal year, down 10% from 182,000 tonnes in 2023-24, because of planned overburden removal work, Bathurst Resources said in its 2024-25 results. But it has increased its Maramarua production since July 2025 because of a contract with Genesis Energy.

BT Mining produced 107,000 tonnes of coal at the mine in July-December 2025, up by 32% on the year, data from Bathurst Resource’s 2025-26 half-year report show. In September 2025, the joint venture agreed to supply 10,000 tonnes of coal to Genesis Energy’s Huntly Power Station – which is located approximately 50 kilometres from Maramarua – each month for two years.

BT Mining’s deal reduces Genesis Energy’s reliance on Indonesian coal imports, the utility said at the time. “It’s about keeping [New Zealanders’] lights on during periods when renewable generation is low,” Genesis Energy Chief Operating Officer Tracey Hickman said.

Genesis Energy uses dual gas-fired and coal-fired generators to smooth over dips in renewable generation. It plans to maintain its coal-fired generators until at least 2035, while also investing in battery storage and biomass projects.

New Zealand businesses burned 855,042 tonnes of coal for electricity generation in 2025, down from 1.2 million tonnes in 2024, largely because of increased solar and hydroelectric generation, data from the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment show.

By Avinash Govind

The Australian Government partly expects infections to rise soon because of upcoming bird migrations. “We will expect to see … millions of migratory bird species arrive in Australia … and where they congregate in numbers mixed with … [infected] bird species … there is [an] increased risk of transmission and further mortality events,” Threatened Species Commissioner Dr Fiona Fraser said.

Australia has recorded 74 confirmed cases of H5N1 – up from 62 confirmed or suspected cases on 2 August – Collins said. Authorities will continue work to determine whether H5N1 has established itself in Australian wildlife, Collins added.

Poultry and agricultural producers have not reported any H5N1 detections since the virus began to spread in late June. “But you do tend to see spillover impacts [from wildlife to poultry] across the globe when it comes to the [H5N1 flu],” Collins said.

Authorities detected one infected bird near Monarto, a poultry hub in SA, where Inghams – Australia’s largest poultry producer – runs a farm.

Inghams has expanded its lockdown of poultry farms and processing plants to address H5N1 flu-related biosecurity risks, a company spokesperson confirmed to Lithos on 2 August. It continues to maintain strict biosecurity protocols to handle potential risks, a company spokesperson said.

H5N1 outbreaks pose a major threat to poultry producers. The virus has a mortality rate of 75% - 100% in poultry and some wild birds, according to Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

By Avinash Govind

The Government cut its fuel excise rate by A$0.32/litre, from A$0.53/litre to A$0.21/litre, for three months in early April because of war-related price shocks. It then lifted the excise rate to A$0.37/litre on 1 July, as part of a staged unwinding of the cut.

“We planned to taper [the fuel excise cut off] at the start of [July] deliberately so we could provide a bit more cost‑of‑living help, so we could smooth out the transition from the full 32 cents to half of that throughout the course of July,” Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers told reporters on 29 July.

“It was never the Government’s intention for [the excise cut] to be permanent,” Chalmers added.

Australia’s fuel excise rate increase could push up retail diesel and petrol prices. Fuel importers and refiners passed on the Government’s 1 July excise hike to retailers within one week. Retailers then passed on the hike to consumers over one month.

Retail petrol and diesel prices in Australia’s five largest cities averaged A$1.94/litre and A$2.33/litre, respectively, on 29 July, up from A$1.52/litre and A$1.74/litre on 30 June, data from the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) show.

Brent crude futures prices increased from $72.95/barrel (A$103.97/barrel) to $84.09/barrel over the same period, data from Trading Economics show. Brent crude futures last traded at $87.93/barrel on 31 July, before markets closed for the weekend.

Australian fuel prices have increased in recent weeks, but its fuel supply outlook has remained moderately stable.

The country has 43 days’ worth of petrol reserves, 39 days’ worth of diesel reserves, and 34 days’ worth of jet fuel reserves, Energy Minister Chris Bowen said on 1 August. Its fuel reserves are up from 43 days’ worth of petrol, 38 days’ worth of diesel, and 32 days’ worth of jet fuel a week ago.

“No [fuel] orders to Australia have been cancelled, and … orders continue to be locked in through September and into October,” Bowen said. “Australia’s fuel security [situation] … continues to be in good shape, and Australians can continue to buy the fuel that they need,” Bowen added.

By Avinash Govind

It continues to maintain strict biosecurity protocols to handle potential risks, a company spokesperson said. But Australian producers have not detected any H5N1 outbreaks in poultry since the virus began to spread among wild birds in late June.

Inghams closed its Western Australian farms and processing plants to non-essential workers on 22 June, in response to two H5N1 detections in wild, migratory birds. The company continues to supply chicken to the Australian market as usual, it told investors at the time.

Inghams’ confirmation of expanded lockdowns comes one day after authorities discovered 49 dead birds off the coast of South Australia (SA), where the company runs a poultry farm. Authorities are investigating whether the birds died from the H5N1 flu, SA’s Department of Primary Industries and Regions said on 1 August.

Australia has recorded 62 confirmed or suspected cases of H5N1 since late June, Australian Chief Veterinary Officer Dr Beth Cookson said on 2 August. The virus has infected birds across five states. But it has spread most widely in SA, infecting 42 birds, data from the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry show.

Australian authorities initially detected H5N1 in migratory seabirds passing through coastal areas. But the virus has spread between multiple local birds in SA, the Australian Government’s Consultative Committee on Emergency Animal Diseases found on 30 July.

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H5N1’s spread among local bird populations could lead to an increased number of infections and deaths, according to the Government.

H5N1 outbreaks pose a major threat to poultry producers. The virus has a mortality rate of 75% - 100% in poultry and some wild birds, according to Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

The Government has urged poultry farmers to review their biosecurity plans, limit contact between wild birds and kept birds, and prevent contamination of food sources and equipment.

By Avinash Govind

The company produced 1.5 billion litres of refined oil at Lytton in April-June, up by 7.4% on the year, using consistent crude oil imports, it told investors in a business update on 30 July.

Ampol expects to import additional refined fuel to offset Lytton production losses in August-October, the company said. Its fuel import capacity is high enough to maintain product availability in August-October, the company added.

“During [the April-June quarter, Lytton] performed very reliably, operating at maximum production and benefiting from rising [global fuel] prices,” Ampol Managing Director and CEO Matt Halliday said.

Ampol’s refining margin – the gap between the import price of Lytton-equivalent fuels and the import price of crude oil – rose to $30.93/barrel (A$44.03/barrel) in April-June, up from $8.71/barrel a year earlier, data from its business update show. Many Asian oil refiners have reduced their fuel output in recent months because of Iran war-related crude oil shortages, supporting elevated margins, the company said.

Singaporean producers slashed their refined petroleum output by 10% on the year in June, for the fourth consecutive month, data from the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) show. Singapore’s petroleum output fell on the year in April and May by 30% and 12%, respectively, EDB data show.

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Ampol’s planned Lytton production cut comes alongside ongoing production challenges at Australia’s other operating oil refinery, Viva Energy’s Geelong plant. Viva Energy expects to operate its Geelong refinery at 90% of its normal processing capacity until the end of 2027 because of an April fire.

The company ran Geelong at 80% of its jet fuel capacity and 60% of its petrol capacity from 15 April until the end of June because of fire damage to a Residue Catalytic Cracking Unit (RCCU), which converts crude oil into refined fuels.

Ampol and Viva Energy sell both imported and domestically refined fuel in Australia. The Australian Government partnered with Viva Energy to import 100 million litres of fuel from Brunei and South Korea on 16 April. It has also helped Ampol purchase 250 million litres of fuel in recent months.

By Avinash Govind

Australia has recorded 27 confirmed detections of H5N1, including 14 in SA, since late June, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry Julie Collins told reporters on 29 July. Authorities suspect that another 11 greater crested terns in SA have contracted the virus, Collins added.

“[But] there [have] been no detections [of H5N1] in any poultry or agricultural industries in Australia and that the risk to human health remains low,” Collins said.

Australian authorities initially detected H5N1 in migratory seabirds passing through coastal areas. The virus’ spread to local bird populations could lead to increased wildlife infections and deaths, according to the Government.

“We do know from the overseas experience that once the virus becomes more widespread in wild bird populations, it will not be possible to avoid losses in susceptible wildlife in the natural environment,” Australian Chief Veterinary Officer Dr Beth Cookson said.

“There are a range of birds that occupy those coastal habitats, and [the Government will work] to determine whether there has been any onward spread and whether there are any other [infected] species,” Cookson added.

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The Government has urged poultry farmers to review their biosecurity plans, limit contact between wild birds and kept birds, and prevent contamination of food sources and equipment.

H5N1 has a mortality rate of 75% - 100% in poultry and some wild birds, according to Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. The virus has infected 207 million American birds across 1023 backyard flocks and 1028 commercial flocks since February 2022, data from the US Department of Agriculture show.

Outbreaks also pushed up American retail egg prices by about 9% in 2024, according to estimates from researchers at the University of Arkansas.

By Avinash Govind

Its annual trimmed mean inflation rate – which excludes the largest positive and negative inflation contributors – stood at 3.6% in June, unchanged from May but above early 2026 levels, ABS data released on 29 July show. Australia’s trimmed mean inflation rate hovered between 3.3% and 3.4% in January-April.

Fuel prices decreased by 7.3% on the year in June – after rising 7.7% in May – largely because of Australia’s reduced fuel excise rate and a temporary drop in Brent crude futures prices.

But fuel prices have increased since the end of June because of Iran war-linked Brent crude oil price spikes and the Australian Government’s partial wind back of its fuel excise cut. Retail petrol and diesel prices in Australia’s five largest cities averaged A$1.80/litre and A$2.15/litre, respectively, on 22 July, up from A$1.52/litre and A$1.74/litre on 30 June.

Brent crude oil futures last traded at $90.31/barrel (A$134.34/barrel) on 29 July, up from $72.95/barrel on 30 June, data from Trading Economics show.

Australian fuel prices could rise again in August because the Government plans to fully wind back its fuel excise cut early in the month. “[Australia’s] fuel excise relief will end at midnight on Sunday [2 August],” Treasurer Jim Chalmers told reporters on 29 July.

“It was never the Government’s intention for [the cut] to be permanent. We planned to taper that off at the start of the month deliberately so we could … smooth out the transition [to a full excise rate],” Chalmers added.

Australian electricity prices rose by 22% on the year in June, up slightly from 21% in May, ABS data show. Electricity was the largest contributor to Australia’s annual housing-related inflation rate of 6.8% in June.

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The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) will work with Australia’s energy regulator to advise Energy Minister Chris Bowen on electricity pricing structures because of inflation concerns, an ACCC spokesperson confirmed to Lithos on 24 June.

Australia’s annual inflation rate decline comes just one day after Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Michele Bullock warned that the Australian economy may need to slow because of elevated inflation.

“Some further easing in the growth of demand is likely to be required if we’re to bring inflation back down sustainably to target. A key question in the period ahead is whether [previous monetary tightening] is sufficient to achieve this,” Bullock said.

By Avinash Govind

“Investing in … onshore sovereign fuel refining capability is a sensible and prudent response to secure our energy security,” Energy Minister Chris Bowen said on 28 July. Australia currently maintains just two operational oil refineries, one of which has run at limited capacity since late-April.

The Governments will give Perdaman – a WA-based fertiliser and energy developer – A$4 million to complete early refinery development work, both said in a joint statement. They expect Perdaman’s developing refinery to produce multiple refined oils, including petrol and diesel.

“Perdaman will undertake a combined pre-feasibility and [early design] program to determine the optimal refinery configuration, supporting port infrastructure and logistics solutions,” the company said.

It plans to develop a refinery in WA. But its development work will support research into the best location and feasibility of a new Australian refinery, Resources Minister Madeleine King told ABC Perth.

The Federal Government expects to fund refinery development projects in other parts of the country, King added. Its funding for Perdaman’s refinery study comes from a A$10 million feasibility study fund that it created in the 2026-27 Federal Budget.

The Federal Government has allocated A$10 billion to fertiliser and fuel supply schemes over the last year, largely in response to Iran war-related fuel supply disruptions. It also slashed Australia’s fuel excise rate from A$0.53/litre to A$0.21/litre in early April, before lifting it back to A$0.37/litre on 1 July, to curb fuel price pressures.

The Government plans to raise its fuel excise rate back to A$0.53/litre on 2 August. But Minister King and Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong made mildly conflicting comments about the excise rise on 28 July.

Early in the day, King declined to rule out an extension to the fuel excise cut in an interview with ABC Perth. The Government would balance the cost of an extended excise cut against ongoing fuel cost pressures, she said.

“We’re … very, very cognisant of the pain felt at the bowser and … I know for a fact the Treasurer and the Prime Minister and other ministers are actively looking at [the fuel excise rate],” King added.

Shortly after King spoke to ABC Perth, Wong appeared to rule out an excise cut extension in an interview with ABC News Breakfast. “It’s not in our current plans to continue the excise. We said it would step down. What we are focused on is assuring continued fuel and fertiliser coming into Australia,” Wong said.

By Avinash Govind

1414 Degrees will supply land, power, and grid connections under the non-binding deal, while its development partner will fund, build, and operate the data centre infrastructure, the company told investors on 27 July. 1414 Degrees has not named its development partner.

The two companies plan to develop 1 GW of infrastructure at Aurora in three stages, 1414 Degrees said. They will build an initial 17 MW starter campus and then scale it to 1 GW as 1414 Degrees expands Aurora’s renewable generation and storage capacity.

1414 Degrees expects to build up to 900 MW of solar generators and a 140 MW battery system at Aurora over the next five years, a company spokesperson told Lithos. But its development timeline is indicative and subject to approvals and funding milestones, they added.

The company aims to install a 140 MW battery system and a 30 MW solar power plant – which planning authorities have approved – within the next twelve months.

“[The data centre deal] validates Aurora’s strategy of attracting energy-intensive industries to a site purpose-built for renewable generation, storage and grid connectivity,” 1414 Degrees Executive Director Kevin Moriarty said.

1414 Degrees’ deal comes just over a week after the Northern Territory (NT) Government granted Beetaloo Digital – a subsidiary of Beetaloo Energy – exclusive development rights over 185 hectares of land near Darwin to support a joint energy and data centre project.

Beetaloo plans to build two AI data centres and a gas-fired power plant to increase domestic gas demand, speed up the development of a shale gas project, and support NT’s economy, Beetaloo Energy said on 22 July.

Beetaloo Digital and 1414 Degrees’ projects appear to align with the Australian Government’s recently announced plan to make data centre developers underwrite power costs and pay for grid connections.

By Avinash Govind

“When we introduced a boost to the in-work tax credit … we put a trigger in place. That was intended to ensure that [the boost] lasted either 12 months or for a more limited period if we saw [petrol] prices being sustained at lower levels,” Finance Minister Nicola Willis told reporters on 27 July.

The Government expects the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE) to report that the average price of New Zealand petrol dipped below NZ$3/litre over the last four consecutive weeks on 29 July, Willis said.

But Cabinet will consider whether it is appropriate to remove the tax credit increase given recent fuel price spikes linked to renewed violence around the Strait of Hormuz, according to Willis.

“[In March, we anticipated that] if you saw the price [of petrol] fall below NZ$3/litre for four weeks in a row, that would mean you were out of the woods,” Willis said. “[But] if prices are above NZ$3 … there would continue to be pressure on the families who we’ve sought [to support],” Willis added.

Unleaded 91 octane petrol prices averaged NZ$3.01/litre – across New Zealand – early on 28 July, up $0.06/litre on the month, data from price monitor Gaspy show. And petrol prices may not fall quickly. Brent crude futures last traded at $89.79/barrel (NZ$155.24/barrel) on 27 July, up from $72.60/barrel on 26 June, because of violence and maritime disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz.

New Zealand buys refined oil products from producers in South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, and Japan. New Zealand and Singapore have signed an Agreement on Trade in Essential Supplies, which includes a pledge not to impose export restrictions on fuel, medical, and construction products.

By Avinash Govind