Reporting season shows how consumers are responding to cost of living pressures and how retailers are responding

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Australians are buying less pizza but more weight-loss drugs. They love “dupes” but don’t enjoy writing letters.

Here are five key takeaways from the August reporting season that show what consumers are buying as cost of living pressures reignite, and how retailers are responding.

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© Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP

© Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP

© Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP

Due to its ubiquity in fast fashion, gen Z are pushing back against the synthetic material and using it as an insult

In 2015, Kate Moss called an easyJet pilot a “basic bitch” and a catchy new insult meaning obvious and uncool hit the mainstream. Had it happened in 2026, Moss might have used the word “polyester”, reportedly gen Z’s new favorite diss, levied at cheap-looking videos on TikTok, and sometimes at other users’ taste.

But its use as a figurative insult also echoes a literal backlash against polyester, now the most-produced synthetic fibre on the planet.

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© Photograph: luanateutzi/Getty Images/iStockphoto

© Photograph: luanateutzi/Getty Images/iStockphoto

© Photograph: luanateutzi/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Avoiding US goods and services – from tech to whisky to air travel – has forced many to find a new way of living

For William McDonald, 38, a diesel mechanic from Thunder Bay, Ontario, “Canadian is always the first choice,” even if it means his weekly bills are higher.

“As soon as Trump started putting those tariffs on in February [last year], I started boycotting US goods,” he said. “Avoiding American products has driven my costs up, and I’m still happy to do it.

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© Photograph: Chris Helgren/Reuters

© Photograph: Chris Helgren/Reuters

© Photograph: Chris Helgren/Reuters

Planning delays and slow 5G upgrades could leave the UK unable to cope with a surge in AI-related traffic

The UK risks becoming a laggard in the global AI race as crucial telecoms upgrades to harness the technology fall behind rival nations, according to senior industry executives.

The infrastructure AI race has centred on the need to build datacentres, and to ensure they have access to the huge water and energy supplies required to cool and supply the computational power to train and run AI models.

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© Photograph: David Gee 4/Alamy

© Photograph: David Gee 4/Alamy

© Photograph: David Gee 4/Alamy

As one of Europe’s biggest consumers of gas the UK may be particularly exposed to heightened price volatility

Europe is on course to enter the cooler months with gas stores at their lowest level in 13 years, which has triggered “winter panic” among energy traders, experts have warned.

The EU’s gas stocks were 63% full in the last week of August, well below the 80% average for late August over recent years and among the lowest levels ever recorded for this time of year.

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© Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

© Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

© Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

As one of Europe’s biggest consumers of gas the UK may be particularly exposed to heightened price volatility

Europe is on course to enter the cooler months with gas stores at their lowest level in 13 years, which has triggered “winter panic” among energy traders, experts have warned.

The EU’s gas stocks were 63% full in the last week of August, well below the 80% average for late August over recent years and among the lowest levels ever recorded for this time of year.

Continue reading...

© Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

© Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

© Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

US president says US will have ‘majority’ control of 65bn barrels of proven oil reserves

Donald Trump announced Friday a new US oil agreement with Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez, saying the US will have “majority” control of 65bn barrels of proven oil reserves.

The terms of the agreement remain to be seen, but the US president said on his social-media platform that it had been brokered “through a partnership with ⁠private business” by his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and defense secretary, Pete Hegseth.

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© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

US president says US will have ‘majority’ control of 65bn barrels of proven oil reserves

Donald Trump announced Friday a new US oil agreement with Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez, saying the US will have “majority” control of 65bn barrels of proven oil reserves.

The terms of the agreement remain to be seen, but the US president said on his social-media platform that it had been brokered “through a partnership with ⁠private business” by his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and defense secretary, Pete Hegseth.

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© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

© Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

The unexpected interruption came hours before the president wrote a congratulatory post on Truth Social about the company’s most recent earnings report.