Household finances are under sharp strain today, from the intimate to the international. In Australia, new estimates suggest the cost of raising a child now rivals a small mortgage even before school fees, lessons and medical bills are counted, underscoring how family budgets are being squeezed. That pressure is painfully personal for diabetes patient Sai Akunuri, who says buying his first family home forced an impossible choice between mortgage payments and the device that helps keep him safe overnight. Beyond households, markets are watching OPEC+ as it considers a modest output increase while the Iran conflict disrupts flows through the Strait of Hormuz; analysts warn any quota change may do little while shipping remains constrained. Elsewhere, geopolitical risk remains elevated after North Korea declared its nuclear programme “absolutely non-negotiable,” adding another layer of uncertainty to an already unsettled global economic backdrop.