US military moves to northern Australia

U.S. Air Force F-22A Raptors assigned to the 27th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron along with Royal Australian Air Force F-35A Lightning IIs from No 75 Squadron and a KC-30A Multi Role Tanker Transport aircraft from No. 33 Squadron, demonstrate a show of force by conducting an elephant walk at RAAF Base Tindal, Australia, July 31, 2024. Exercise Pitch Black showcases allies and partners to synchronizing efforts across a joint, combined force. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Spencer Tobler)

The US military has established bases around Australia and Western Australia is building accommodation for permanent postings of US Navy and Marines in readiness for the elusive AUKUS submarine program.

PM Albanese when meeting with President Trump on Tuesday knew he had a bargaining chip with US bases and critical minerals were an aside because the Liberal government of Scott Morrison had already done a deal with mineral mining in 2019 and again unofficially in June 2025.

If left to the ALP there would have been no minerals deal with the US.

https://youtu.be/V5SrswcJHQ8

https://cairnsnews.org/2025/10/23/us-military-moves-to-northern-australia/

Aus MSM

'Buckle up': Australia's largest bank warns global economic order is unravelling

Australia's run of interest rate cuts risks coming to a screeching halt as the global economy enters unchartered waters, the country's largest bank warns.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) believes a new economic era is unfolding, with a breakdown in trust among key countries at its heart.

In an investor update yesterday, the bank's chief economist, Luke Yeaman wrote the conventions around global finance were rapidly changing, putting economic security ahead of efficiency.

"Overall, these changes are a net negative for global growth and productivity, reversing some of the gains we saw during the era of globalisation.

"They will also put upward pressure on neutral interest rates."

Yeaman thinks dominant factors in geopolitics and the world economy are working against a lower cash rate.

"This new era will see sustained higher levels of economic and market volatility, greater domestic investment, add structural pressure to government budgets, and drive more government intervention in the economy, creating bifurcated markets," he wrote.

The major factor driving all this is geopolitics, with conflict, sanctions, industry policy, tariffs and restrictions on investment and exports unsettling the conventional order of co-operation and global capital.

Yeaman notes the disruptive trade policies of US President Donald Trump are partly to blame, but there is far more at play.

"This is a deep structural change, not a temporary Trump phenomenon — as some would like to think."

"Investors shouldn't lose sight of the fact that there is a far bigger game at play here that goes well beyond a standard trade negotiation.

"This is a long fight for strategic power; it is not primarily about short-term economics."

Amid the stark outlook, the CBA update has a couple of bright spots: the potential for the expansion of AI and renewable energy to restore balance.

In contrast to many forecasts, Yeaman thinks rapidly evolving technology will lift productivity in the global economy.

"Job displacement is harder to measure, and estimates vary wildly. Most job classes will be affected in some way by AI, but suggestions of mass unemployment appear alarmist."

https://www.9news.com.au/finance/cba-warns-australians-facing-new-economic-order/cad3119f-e9e9-41bd-8b46-f9d0b747e177