Good morning. Today we return to work amid continuing squabbles between federal and state governments on the contentious issue of schools. That’s what everyone is talking about today: schools.

1. Westpac has deferred its dividend after revealing a massive 70% slump in first half cash profit of $993 million. “This is the most difficult result Westpac has seen in many years. It is significantly impacted by higher impairment charges due to COVID-19, as well as notable items including the AUSTRAC provision,” CEO Peter King said. The bank reckons it remains “well provisioned and capitalised” but that it would be prudent to withhold a dividend given the uncertainty of the coming months.

2. Following a weekend of slightly relaxed coronavirus restrictions, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said her state is “heading to get a bit of normality back in our lives”. Face-to-face learning is set to recommence next week in NSW schools.

3. The above comes as PM Scott Morrison continues to pressure Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews to fully reopen the state’s schools. Victorian schools was the nexus of the big political item of the weekend. Education Minister Dan Tehan popped up on the ABC to say Andrews had demonstrated a “failure of leadership” in his cautious approach to schools – but was forced to walk it back when just one hour later it was revealed a Melbourne primary school had shut because a teacher was diagnosed with COVID-19. Timing!

4. In case you missed it at the tail end of last week: Scott Morrison announced the decision on whether to relax Australia’s coronavirus restrictions will now be made on Friday – a week early. “Australians have earned an early mark,” Morrison said. (I’m reliably informed that ‘early mark’ is very much east coast parlance, and some parts of Australia don’t know what that means.) Again, Morrison stressed that any relaxation will be contingent on how many Australians download the COVIDSafe contact tracing app.

5. Australian capital city property prices grew by just 0.2% in April, the lowest growth since they stopped falling in June last year. Melbourne led the market lower, as prices fell 0.3%, while rents fell across all capital cities except Perth, according to CoreLogic. Forecasting 10% price falls, Commonwealth Bank economist Gareth Aird said CoreLogic’s numbers were lagging behind where the market is really headed.

6. Uber has rolled out a “temporary” service in Australia, which lets you book a car by the hour so you can get errands done – like going to the supermarket and the pharmacy in one trip. The ‘Hourly Driver’ service has a base rate of $59 an hour and you will be charged per minute thereafter. It’s available in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

7. Tech salaries in Australia have so far proved immune to the COVID-19 downturn. These are the top paying startup jobs in Australia and how much they earn.

8. The US recorded its deadliest day during the coronavirus pandemic on Friday, according to new data released by the World Health Organisation. The organisation recorded 2,909 total coronavirus-related deaths in 24 hours. The figure comes as about half of US states have started easing their lockdown restrictions and others have announced plans to do so. One state, Mississippi, has backtracked on its plan to loosen restrictions after 20 people died in the state on Friday.

9. Normal life is slowly resuming in China, and the way its restaurants operate could provide a glimpse into the future for the rest of the world. Restaurants across China and Hong Kong have made drastic changes to the dining experience, and in many places, temperature checks, masks, and plastic partitions between diners are now the norm.

10. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway sold the “big four” airline stocks in April, the famed investor revealed at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting on Saturday. “It turned out I was wrong,” Buffett said about his decision to invest in American, Delta, United, and Southwest. Buffett warned that airline carriers could be left with “too many planes” if people fly less due to the coronavirus.

BONUS ITEM

In case you were getting ideas in lockdown.

As always, if you have any tips or anything you think BI should know about – shoot me a message at [email protected].

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