Gold Spot Price AUD $6318.46

Silver Spot Price AUD $104.63

Platinum Spot Price AUD $2733.49

Australia’s latest federal budget is beginning to ripple through the small business sector, with accountants, advisers and business owners now quietly weighing up what future structural changes could mean for trusts, investment vehicles and long-term tax planning.

For many Australians running family businesses, investment structures and discretionary trusts have long been part of the landscape. The concern now is not simply about taxation itself, but the potential cost of restructuring away from existing setups should future policy tighten further. In some cases, business owners are already discussing whether major accounting and legal costs could soon become unavoidable, particularly for families with property holdings, intergenerational wealth planning or multiple entities.

At the same time, Sydney’s auction market appears to be losing some momentum following ongoing discussion around negative gearing and broader property taxation reform. While the idea of reducing investor participation is often presented as a pathway toward housing affordability, the reality may be far more complicated.

If investor appetite weakens significantly, the question becomes whether additional housing supply actually appears, or whether property owners simply sit on existing assets longer and wait for conditions to improve. Australia’s housing shortage is still very real, and many economists continue to argue that supply remains the largest issue facing affordability rather than investor participation alone.

Globally, geopolitical tension remains close to the surface. Reports surrounding a UAE-linked drone attack targeting a nuclear facility caused immediate concern across markets this week, despite the strike ultimately falling short of creating major damage. Investors remain highly sensitive to anything involving energy infrastructure or nuclear assets throughout the Middle East, particularly while tensions between Iran and the United States continue simmering in the background.

Meanwhile, talks between the United States and China concluded with relatively little fanfare. Markets took notice less for what was said, and more for what was avoided. Taiwan was notably absent from major public commentary following the meetings, which many analysts interpreted as both sides attempting to avoid escalating tensions during already fragile global economic conditions.

Gold continues to drift slightly lower and sideways, broadly following the path of its 50-day moving average. While the metal has lost some short-term momentum, it still appears relatively stable considering the combination of geopolitical stress, inflation concerns and uncertain global growth. Silver has also softened slightly, though precious metals overall remain well supported compared to many traditional sectors facing increasing economic pressure.

At the moment, markets feel caught between two competing ideas. On one side sits slowing growth and consumer fatigue. On the other sits persistent inflation pressure and geopolitical instability. Until one side clearly gains control of the narrative, traders appear hesitant to make aggressive moves in either direction.

Enjoy today’s charts

Gold daily chart, with 50MDA