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A Greens-led Senate supermarket inquiry's 195-page report recommends the retailers' powers be curtailed, regulatory oversight be increased and that they should possibly even be broken up. 

Meanwhile although unsurprising to almost all, the Reserve Bank board's decision to keep interest rates steady for a fourth consecutive meeting has been tempered by its own economists warning that soaring petrol prices would help drive inflation higher over coming months and flatten real wage growth in 2024. And that won't help the case for rates to fall.

The effect on the Australian sharemarket was that it reached its highest daily close in almost four weeks, supported in part by rising US markets on a dovish statement by the Federal Reserve and cooling labour market data. The ASX 200 had its best day in more than three months and its second biggest daily rise this year, closing up 1.4 per cent at 7793.3 points. The broader All Ordinaries also gained 1.4 per cent to close at 8065.5 points.

And there's grim news for the future of Bonza, after the administrators attempting to return the budget airline to service told a Federal Court hearing they were powerless to stop the fleet of Boeing 737 Max 8s from being removed from Australia.

The Big Read

Property tycoon Lang Walker has been remembered as a visionary who changed the face of Australian property, while enjoying the fullest of lives, whether at the helm of his business empire or his beloved boats.

A celebration of his life in Sydney on Friday drew mourners reflecting the breadth of his interests, including former prime minister John Howard, ALP powerbroker and lobbyist Graham Richardson, mayors, a former police commissioner, and a Fijian politician hailing from near Mr Walker’s Kokomo Private Island Resort.

In a message, Anthony Albanese wrote that Mr Walker inspired and energised others and in many ways “embodied so much of what is best about the Australian spirit and contributed so much to making our country an even better one”.

Ben Wilmot

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