Good morning all. Hope you had restful weekends.

1. Scott Morrison has abandoned vaccine targets, and has admitted that not all Australians will get their first shot by the end of the year. “While we would like to see these doses completed before the end of the year, it is not possible to set such targets given the many uncertainties involved,” Morrison said in a message posted to his Facebook. “We will just get on with the job of working together to produce, distribute and administer the vaccines as safely and efficiently as possible.”

2. The announcement came following confirmation Australia had secured 20 million additional doses of the Pfizer vaccine. However, the Pfizer shots – which will compensate for the AstraZeneca imbroglio – will not arrive until the final months of this year. Australia has also secured the rights to 51 million doses of the Novavax vaccine, but it is yet to receive TGA approval.

3. The RBA has shed more light on its view of the property market, revealing it is keeping a close eye on emerging risks. As asset prices rise on the back of low interest rates, the central bank says home buyers are taking on additional risk as they bank on future growth. “Even if lenders do not weaken their own settings, increased risk-taking by optimistic borrowers could see deterioration in the average quality of new lending. This would weaken the resilience of businesses and households, and so the financial system, to future shocks,” it noted.

4. The insurance industry estimates the damage bill from last month’s flooding in NSW and QLD will near $600 million. But financial counsellors say the true cost will be much higher, after countless small businesses faced the disaster without coverage. “It’s not a good news story that they’re not contacting us about insurance,” said Helen Davis, general manager of the Small Business Financial Counselling Support Line.

5. A new study from the University of Queensland suggests vapes and e-cigarettes could be more effective in helping smokers quit than almost anything else. The findings stand in stark contrast to Australia’s inconsistent and generally quite restrictive e-cigarette laws, which have led to a grey market for vape liquid and products. The vape market is set to be worth US$67.31 billion by 2027, driven largely by demand from Gen Z and millennials.

6. International travel will not return properly until 2023, according to analysis from Deloitte, leaving parts of the Australian economy exposed. With no international visitors and far fewer business travellers, hotels in cities like Sydney, Hobart and the Gold Coast are expected to take more than three years to recover fully. “In the short to medium term therefore, hotels in the major cities will need to look at ways to encourage a greater volume of domestic holidaymakers to fill the gap from business travellers,” Deloitte national tourism leader Adele Labine-Romain said.

7. Over a million Clubhouse users have had their personal data leaked, Cyber News reported. The social media app, popular for its audio community, is the latest to have user records posted in a hacker forum. LinkedIn and Facebook user data has also been exposed online within the past week.

8. Amazon released its official response to the union results at its Bessemer, Alabama warehouse. In short, it thanked employees for participating and denied intimidating them into voting against the unionisation drive. “It’s easy to predict the union will say that Amazon won this election because we intimidated employees, but that’s not true. Our employees heard far more anti-Amazon messages from the union, policymakers, and media outlets than they heard from us,” Amazon said. Experts say companies’ battles with workers, regulators, and politicians are far from over.

9. The Ever Given can’t leave the Suez Canal until compensations are paid, officials said Thursday. It is still unclear how much has to be paid, although it could be up to $1 billion. “The vessel will remain here until investigations are complete and compensation is paid,” Lt. Gen. Osama Rabie, who leads the Suez Canal Authority, told a local news station on Thursday, according to the Wall Street Journal.

10. Bitcoin approached all-time highs over the weekend, topping US$60,000 for the first time in weeks. The latest rally comes as the cryptocurrency continues to make gains at major, mainstream institutions. Elon Musk tweeted cryptically in an apparent reference to the rally, fuelling speculation about his plans.

BONUS ITEM

Wow, a glimpse into a more civilised era. This is real, by the way.

Follow Business Insider Australia on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.