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1. Victoria recorded 13 new coronavirus cases and four deaths on Wednesday. NSW and Queensland both recorded no new local cases. A possible link for a case which reset the NSW/Queensland border clock has been identified, raising the possibility of having the border opened sooner.

2. Private security has been stood down in Victoria’s hotel quarantine program, amid concerns of poor infection control. Instead, Victoria Police will guard the overseas arrivals.

3. Did you tune into the nightmare show that was the debate between U.S. presidential candidates Donald Trump and Joe Biden? If you didn’t, it wasn’t a particularly edifying affair. Kind of like a protracted argument in a nursing home, actually. Our friends at Business Insider US called it a testament to “how broken American capitalism is”.

4. The latest APRA figures show most banks are struggling to get customers to restart repayments. In August, just $10 billion worth of loans were thawed, leaving $229 billion frozen – including $160 billion in mortgages. It leaves around 230,000 loans withering, as Australians struggle to service their debts.

5. New analysis by credit rating agency Equifax has revealed which suburbs are facing the most mortgage stress. In terms of proportion made by a suburb, Queensland dominates the list with nine of its tourist destinations in the top 10. In terms of the sheer number of mortgage deferrals, Victorian suburbs on the fringes of Melbourne are over-represented.

6. The Banking Code Compliance Committee (BCCC) has sanctioned Bendigo Bank for four years of breaching the Banking Code. That’s the first name and shame job by the banking watchdog – but there’ll be no penalties beyond that. You might recall that the general lack of penalties for misconduct was one of the things the royal commission took particular issue with.

7. Uber has defended the controversial high commissions it charges restaurants through its Uber Eats platform. Speaking at The Australian Financial Review’s Future Briefing on Tuesday, Uber community operations director for Australia and New Zealand and North Asia, Mark Capps, said there was no plans to lower that rate and that the company helps Aussie businesses in other ways.

8. Google unveiled the Pixel 5 on Wednesday, its next flagship smartphone and competitor to the iPhone. Google’s Pixel line doesn’t have as big of a presence in the market as it rivals from Samsung, Apple, and Huawei, but the company often uses them to introduce new Android features.

9. The UK economy posted a record contraction in the second quarter of the year, with gross domestic product plunging 19.8% between the months of April and June. It is the largest decline since quarterly records began in 1955, and reflects the harsh impact of ongoing containment policies that were put in place to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

10. Tesla will start using cobalt-free batteries in certain Model 3s made in China, two unnamed sources told Reuters. Cobalt is very expensive to mine and its production is linked to human rights violations. In China, Tesla wants to use cobalt-free batteries in all standard-range Model 3s, the sources said.

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