Wednesday 4th November

The TGA has approved Wegovy as a daily pill, the first GLP-1 weight-loss drug cleared in tablet form in Australia, and more than 10,000 Australians have already signed up to an online waiting list for it.

Pick & Scroll News Published Nov 4, 2026

Good morning. The TGA has approved Wegovy as a daily pill, the first GLP-1 weight-loss drug cleared in tablet form in Australia, and more than 10,000 Australians have already signed up to an online waiting list for it.

Until now Australians could only take GLP-1 drugs as weekly injections, and Novo Nordisk's 25mg tablet works like the 2.4mg injection because the body absorbs less of the drug when it is swallowed.

The pill drew three million prescriptions in its first 5 months in the US, but no Australian price has been set and the PBS only subsidises weight-loss drugs for people with type 2 diabetes.

All the headlines and more below...

ONLY 12% OF MERCHANTS RAISED PRICES IN FIRST 3 WEEKS AFTER CARD SURCHARGE BAN

Tyro analysed hundreds of millions of transactions across 65,000 Australian businesses in hospitality, retail and services and found only 12.4% raised prices in the first 3 weeks after the card surcharge ban began on 1 October, despite mounting cost pressure from higher wages, rent and energy bills. Most businesses are absorbing the cost for now. Those that did increase prices lifted them well beyond their previous surcharge.

The Reserve Bank banned card surcharges in October because the rules had become confusing and many merchants were charging between 1% and 1.5% on transactions. The underlying cost of accepting card payments has not changed.

Tyro expects more businesses to lift prices during the next 6 months. Many have held back increases for 12 to 18 months as rent, electricity, supplier costs and wage bills have climbed. The RBA's fifth rate rise this year, announced on Tuesday, hits 3 ways: consumers pull back spending, businesses face higher borrowing costs and many owners are servicing their own mortgages.

AUSTRALIAN NEWS

RBA raised the cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.85%, its 5th hike this year and the highest level in 18 years, to tackle stubbornly above-target inflation. LINK
Perth’s median dwelling price fell 5.7% over 3 months to $942,018 and economists at CBA forecast an 18% slide from April’s peak as the RBA lifted rates to 4.85%. LINK
Consumer NZ testing found 6 sunscreens sold in Australia failed to meet their advertised SPF ratings as the TGA considered possible regulatory action and tighter testing rules. LINK
Jobs and Skills Australia reported that 279 occupations, or 27% of those assessed, were in shortage this year as employers struggled with constrained worker supply, unsuitable applicants and retention issues. LINK
About 35,000 home batteries are being installed each month under the Cheaper Home Batteries policy even after subsidy cuts, lifting total subsidised systems above 550,000 at an estimated $5B cost. AFR
The Australian HR Institute reported that 32% of its members saw more informal grievances in the September quarter as employees used AI to file longer, more complex complaints. AFR
Australia’s education ministers have backed a school “digital detox” with handwritten NAPLAN writing tests and mandated screen-time limits, arguing screens harm learning but digital assessments remain valuable. AFR
Scammers targeted travellers and accommodation providers in WA's Kimberley after hackers breached third-party booking provider RMS, accessing customer names, booking details and contact information nationwide. LINK

DAVID JONES WILL NOT DISCLOSE VALUE OF UNSPENT GIFT CARDS AS RETAILER FIGHTS TO SURVIVE CHRISTMAS

David Jones will not disclose the value of unspent gift cards held by customers as the 188-year-old department store fights to trade beyond Christmas. The retailer secured a $10M emergency lifeline from lender Hilco last month to stock stores for the festive period. Cash flow problems, an exodus of luxury brands and falling consumer spending have left gift card holders questioning whether their credit is safe.

Gift card holders rank as unsecured creditors if a business collapses, sitting at the back of the creditors queue with little prospect of redemption at face value. If David Jones enters administration and is sold, new owners are not obliged to honour gift cards issued by the previous operator.

The Australian Financial Review reports David Jones is considering shrinking its footprint from 38 stores to as few as 12, with 5 loss-making Westfield stores flagged for closure. The company missed an October 30 financial reporting deadline with ASIC. CEO Erica Berchtold said last week she is in "advanced discussions with key stakeholders" but declined to comment on speculation.

THE INSIDE TRACK

Canva is planning to send redundancy communications at 7am on Wednesday and cut about 20% of roles. LINK
EnergyAustralia made 30% of heads of layer redundant and is planning deeper cuts to be announced this side of Christmas. LINK
Lendi Group is conducting an internal investigation at Aussie and is calling staff in to sign non disclosure agreements. LINK
NAB delayed all non voluntary redundancies until late Jan after meeting with FSU with redundancies pushed out to Jan 27th and the consultation period now closing on 11th of Nov. LINK
Westpac is making layoffs across all divisions under the Catalyst banner with numbers described as much bigger than previously suggested. LINK
Woolworths is cutting 50% of capital finance roles and is about to apply the same impact across all FP&A teams by offshoring roles to India. LINK

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COMPANY NEWS

Sydney University reported 2941 alleged academic integrity breaches in its 2025 report as AI-enabled wearables and contract cheating syndicates drove rising live-exam fraud and 677 exam breaches. LINK
Macquarie became the first major bank to pass on the RBA’s latest 25bp rate hike in full, lifting mortgage and savings rates after the cash rate rose to 4.85%. LINK
Choice awarded its 2026 Shonky Awards to Ticketek, Ticketmaster, Virgin Australia, Hisense, Quest protein chips, Petcover and Sony over ticket pricing, expired credits, misleading claims and restrictive policies. LINK
Etsy has tightened rules on AI-generated listings by banning AI patterns, recipes and instructions and mandating unedited product photos as it works to improve authenticity and protect original creators. LINK
Westpac ended its partnership with US firm Palantir amid shareholder and activist pressure as it committed to an independent review of human rights considerations in its sourcing processes. CB
MinterEllison launched a Federal Court class action against Meta over alleged youth psychiatric harm as Shine Lawyers prepared a similar Victorian Supreme Court claim amid parallel scrutiny of teen social media harms. LINK
ASIC fined large private companies including Merivale, Chemist Warehouse’s vehicle and retailers like Kookai and Prouds $4.2M for late 2025 financial accounts as its crackdown continued. LINK
On accelerated its Australian expansion as it targeted younger consumers and football fans, after On Oceania nearly doubled sales to $76M with $32.6M gross profit in 2025. LINK

AUSCORP EMPLOYEE BENEFITS SURVEY 2026

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