Good morning. Meta has launched a paid subscription in Australia that lets businesses reach an actual human at Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp support.
Meta One starts at $3.99 a month, and the business plans from $22.99 also bundle in AI tools, verification and protection against impersonation.
For anyone who has lost an Instagram account to a hacker and spent weeks writing to a help centre, the answer turns out to be a credit card.
All the headlines and more below...
NEW HOME SALES FELL 19% IN THE 3 MONTHS TO AUGUST
New home sales dropped 19.3% in the 3 months to August compared with the previous quarter, hitting their lowest level in over a year as buyers opt for cheaper established properties. The Housing Industry Association tracked sales by large-volume builders across 5 mainland states and recorded declines for 4 consecutive months, with Victoria down 27%, Queensland 20.2%, NSW 17.5%, South Australia 10.8% and Western Australia 8.2%.
New homes now carry a premium buyers can't justify as borrowing capacity is squeezed by higher interest rates. Most builders won't start a project without securing a buyer first, and lenders typically require a minimum level of pre-sales before releasing credit. Cotality estimates broader market home sales were 15% lower over winter than a year earlier, but new homes have been hit harder as construction costs rise and older properties become comparatively cheaper.
The drop in sales now means fewer homes will break ground in 2027, even as 244,000 dwellings were under construction in the March quarter of 2026 - the most since records began in 1984. Australia set a target of 1.2M new homes by June 2029 under the National Housing Accord, but government figures show the goal is already tracking behind and won't be met until the end of 2030.
AUSTRALIAN NEWS
The government has activated Level 3 fuel security preparations and urged agencies to cut diesel use as Middle East conflict, disrupted Saudi supplies and possible export curbs heighten global shortage risks. AFR
A survey by Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer has found growing employer pessimism about the government’s workplace laws, with 56% viewing new arbitration powers as an industrial weapon and 70% saying unions have too much power. AFR
Cotality reported that Brisbane remains the most profitable capital with a $525,000 median resale gain and 99.8% of sales making a profit as national resale profits fall. LINK
Australia’s labour market has seen youth employment for 15-to-24 year-olds climb to its highest level since records began in 1986 as strong demand favours trades and non-degree jobs. LINK
Australia’s housing market has recorded 95.4% of June-quarter dwelling resales at a profit, delivering $35.9B in vendor gains as long-held properties and earlier price surges provide large equity buffers. LINK
Australia’s government borrowing spree has pushed Commonwealth gross debt above $1T as 10-year bond yields surge to 5.42% and global investors demand higher returns amid persistent inflation. CB
SYDNEY AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS TOOK 17 SICK DAYS ON AVERAGE IN FY26, THE HIGHEST IN AUSTRALIA
The figure is the highest in Australia and above Melbourne's 12.8 days and Brisbane's 13.5, with the union saying it reflects chronic understaffing that has left many Sydney controllers working 10 days on, one day off, and rosters presented with unfilled shifts that staff are expected to cover through overtime.
Across 914 controllers nationally, 13,404 sick leave days were taken in FY26, or 14.6 days per person, up 9% on the prior year. Controllers are legally entitled to unlimited sick leave under civil aviation safety regulations, which bar them from working when fatigued or unwell. Adelaide controllers averaged 5 days, the lowest nationally, followed by Perth on 8.45. Sixty-one controllers took long-term sick leave of more than 28 consecutive days during the year, and 19 remained on it as at 30 June.
Airservices Australia says it has 914 controllers, above the 890 needed to fill all roles, but is recruiting 95 this year and another 91 by mid-2027 to increase resilience. From 1 November all curfew-exempt freight flights into Sydney will be diverted to Western Sydney Airport, reducing traffic at Kingsford Smith to emergency service flights only during the evening curfew.
COMPANY NEWS
News Corp’s Herald Sun has begun publishing AI-assisted local news and imagery under its Leader brand to expand regional coverage. LINK
Anthropic has signed its first Australian deal to use part of a proposed $32B Western Downs data centre, which rivals say raises concerns over energy use and gas reliance. LINK
Revolut has told regulators that Australian customers were not affected by its data breach. LINK
ACCC has taken ARMA Group and Force Legal to court over allegedly misleading 320,000 debt enforcement notices as an 81-year-old Suncorp customer received bullying collection letters. LINK
A tiny Gold Coast law firm Ezylegal has used its homemade AI tool Rachel to win a Queensland land tax case. AFR
Entain has begun consulting on cutting 400 customer care jobs to stay competitive as rising UK gambling taxes and a potential machine games duty hike increase cost pressures. LINK
CSL reported FY26 revenue of US$15.8B, a 1% constant-currency decline as underlying NPATA fell 2% to US$3.1B and impairments drove a US$2.6B loss. LINK
What’s still sitting on your to-do list?
You don’t need an AI team to build an AI agent. With Skydive, the person who knows the work can create the agent to do it.
Start an agent off with a role, teach them how your team operates, connect your tools, and put them to work.
ONE MORE SCROLL
Editor’s Pick: The World Health Organization has highlighted that while decent, safe work can support mental health and productivity for the nearly 60% of people in employment, poor working conditions, psychosocial risks and unemployment can seriously undermine mental health and increase risks such as suicide attempts.
Draft Pick: Alex de Minaur has embraced this weekend's Davis Cup tie against Poland in Brisbane as a chance to regain his spark and confidence after an early US Open exit.
Doctor’s Pick: How obsessing over fibre can backfire on your gut.
TRUE OR FALSE
The "Forbidden City" is in Beijing.
Answer below
OUR SOCIALS
 |
Pick & ScrollJoin over 30,000 followers on our LinkedIn and Instagram for industry insights and snapshots. |
ANSWER
True. The Forbidden City is the 15th-century imperial palace that was off-limits to Chinese subjects.
