Crypto News: House prices stay strong

Good morning, it's Ainsley here with all the news you need to kick off your working week.

Today's must-reads:
• House prices remain robust
• What's next in the PwC scandal
• NZ PM tests positive for Covid

Australian home prices stayed strong in September, driven by soaring demand that's outweighing the impact of the central bank's aggressive policy tightening campaign. Sydney prices, the national bellwether, advanced 1%, down slightly from the previous month, property consultancy CoreLogic said. Adelaide led September's gains, climbing 1.7%.

The PricewaterhouseCoopers tax leak scandal has shaken the country's consulting and auditing industry since it became public in January. Here's a rundown of what's happened so far and what may come next.

NZ Votes 2023: Prime Minister Chris Hipkins tested positive for Covid-19, putting him in isolation two weeks ahead of the country's general election. "Bugger! After a rough night I woke up this morning feeling pretty unwell and just got this test result," Hipkins posted on his official Facebook page yesterday.

Artificial intelligence is going to eliminate jobs — millions of them, writes Betsey Stevenson in Bloomberg Opinion. Hollywood writers deserve credit for raising these and other important questions about how AI should be used.

Kevin McCarthy's embrace of a bipartisan deal to avert a US government shutdown triggered a mutiny by far-right Republicans to depose him as House speaker. Florida Republican Matt Gaetz said he'll file a motion to oust McCarthy this week.

The against-the-odds deal to avert the US shutdown is soothing nerves across Wall Street after a week of interest rate-spurred market disruptions. Asian shares may get a boost. China's markets won't trade this week, and Hong Kong is closed today.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said he wouldn't accept any offer to be Donald Trump's 2024 running mate. "No. I'm running for president," he said on Fox News' Sunday Morning Futures when asked the hypothetical question. "We need somebody that can serve two terms."

Apple said recent claims of new iPhones getting too hot to the touch are due to software and app-related bugs and that fixes are coming soon. It's working with developers behind the apps causing the iPhone to overheat.

All times Sydney
• 09:00: Australia Sept. Judo Bank Australia PMI Manufacturing
• 11:00: Australia Sept. Melbourne Institute Inflation

Maturing palm oil trees are becoming a multi-billion dollar headache for Southeast Asia. Hurt by a shortage of labor and rising costs, farmers say they can't afford to replant as trees reach their commercial lifespan of about 25 years. The result: Expect constrained exports from Malaysia and Indonesia — and higher prices for an ingredient in everything from ice cream to cosmetics to fuel.