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A consumer slowdown has smashed sales at Harvey Norman, with the retailer announcing a 30 per cent dive in yearly profit.

The company, which also owns brands Domayne and Joyce Mayne, on Thursday posted a full-year underlying net profit of $471.9 million, down from $673.5 million the previous year.

Rising inflation and interest rates have hit retailers hard as consumers reduce discretionary spending to keep their heads above water.

Revenue from franchisees dropped 10 per cent after sales fell 4.9 per cent to $6.42 billion, slicing profit margins to 5.8 per cent.

Chairman Gerry Harvey also attributed the drop in sales to a normalisation in trading conditions after pent-up demand caused by COVID-19 lockdowns inflated figures the previous year.

But he says the company's $4 billion property portfolio keeps it in good stead to ride out worsening macroeconomic conditions and cost of living pressures.

"We've always been unlucky because we've been in that bulky goods type market that's been undervalued and not regarded as highly as office or warehouse," Mr Harvey told AAP.

"Now it's all turned around. So office is crook, warehousing's great, the sort of retail we're in is great.

"We're the hot market now."

Mr Harvey blamed cooler than usual temperatures on Australia's east coast for lower sales of seasonal products such as air conditioners, fans and barbecues.

He said profitability is still well above pre-pandemic levels, with before-tax profit up 35 per cent from 2019 to $776 million, and touted a 40 per cent growth in net assets.

Operating expenses rose 8.1 per cent after being abnormally low the previous year, when the company was forced to shut its stores due to COVID restrictions.

The overseas business, which is operated by Harvey Norman as opposed to franchisees, experienced a 40.1 per cent drop in profit.

The group's property segment, which makes up just under a quarter of total underlying profit, recorded a 25.9 per cent profit dip.

E&P Capital retail analyst Phillip Kimber said the result, while "broadly in line with expectations, was very weak".

"The Australian franchisee was better than expected, but the offshore businesses were generally worse than expected," he said in a note.

"Sales momentum remains weak."

The board declined to provide earnings guidance for the current financial year, but revealed Australian retail trading for July was down 12.6 per cent on the previous corresponding period.

Mr Harvey said there's about a 50-50 chance Australia follows New Zealand into a minor recession in the next two years, but there will be severe pressure on most businesses regardless.

"As far as the current situation goes, the city stores are under more pressure than the country stores," Mr Harvey said.

"Overseas we expect to do better than last year. I can't tell you what will happen in Australia.

"Overall, we've got full employment but we've got huge increases in rent, electricity, wages, all those things. So cost of doing business is going to be a major problem for any business."

Malaysia remains Mr Harvey's prime expansion target. He intends to grow his empire in the Southeast Asian country from 30 to 80 stores by the end of 2028.

Harvey Norman was the last of Australia's major retailers to report its full-year earnings.

JB Hi-Fi surprised the market earlier in August with a lower-than-expected drop in profits, with sales actually increasing at the electronics and white goods chain.

"They're a very strong competitor to us in TV and audio and computer, but they're not a strong competitor in anything else," Mr Harvey said.

"When you go through it category by category we're in a very strong position."

Harvey Norman declared a fully franked final dividend of 12 cents, down from 17.5 cents the previous year.

The company's share price rose by 3.5 per cent to $3.98 about lunchtime.

© AAP 2023

The reliability of Australia's energy supply will be under significant risk unless there is urgent investment in new sources of electricity and transmission, the national energy market regulator has warned.

The latest Electricity Statement of Opportunities (ESOO), released on Thursday, provides an outlook for the National Electricity Market in the coming decade.

It was not a forecast but rather a guide to inform planning and policy decisions, Australian Energy Market Operator chief executive Daniel Westerman said.

"It's a signal to investors that the viability gaps do exist and points investors to where and when they need to be filled," he said.

About 62 per cent of Australia's coal power stations are expected to be retired by 2023, with unplanned outages from the ageing fleet also posing risks to grid stability.

Planned generation, storage and transmission supported by government programs "must be delivered urgently" because any delay would likely put reliability at risk over the coming decade, the statement said.

Reliability risks are forecast to exceed standards in several states in coming years, and as soon as the coming summer in Victoria and South Australia.

The hotter and drier conditions would likely increase peak demand for electricity, Mr Westerman said.

"When there are multiple days of very hot weather, low wind and unplanned outages from coal-fired power stations, that's when we can get into tight situations between supply and demand," he said.

"Before this summer, we are connecting new renewable projects and storage projects and importantly a new gas power station.

"We're working towards connecting with the new generation that will replace our old coal-fired power stations. That is our best way forward."

Director at think tank Climate Energy Finance, Tim Buckley, said urgent action was needed from state and federal governments.

"Accelerating the pace of energy transformation and transitioning our grid is critical to ensuring reliable energy supply and solving the current energy crisis," he said.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen said the past five ESOO reports under the coalition government flagged supply concerns, heightened risks from coal outages and the need to incentivise continued supply.

"Over the last decade, four gigawatts of dispatchable energy left the national energy market and only one gigawatt came on. That means the system is very tight," he said.

"We have a lot of catching up to do but that catching up has begun and will continue to."

Asked if the former coalition government should take any responsibility for the concerning state of the energy system, Liberal senator James Paterson said there had been "record investment" in renewables.

As a senator for Victoria, he was unsurprised the state was facing the possibility of blackouts under the Andrews government's energy policies.

"When you've got a state government here in Victoria which is putting extra taxes on coal-fired power generation, that has led to the inevitable circumstances we're seeing right now," he said.

But Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said he would not apologise for pushing forward with renewable energy projects.

"You can cling to the past and pretend that it's a fossil fuel future or you can work really hard every single day to make sure that we've got more renewable energy," he said.

"We choose to work hard every day and that's exactly what we'll keep on doing."

The Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association said the answer to the looming energy crisis was gas.

"Gas is the safety net we need as we transform our electricity system," chief executive Samantha McCulloch said.

"Governments must start listening to the repeated warnings from independent authorities of the need for new gas supply."

© AAP 2023

Qantas is facing court action as the consumer watchdog alleges the national carrier advertised tickets for 8000 flights that had already been cancelled.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is launching action in the Federal Court claiming Qantas engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct after continuing to sell the tickets for an average of more than two weeks, and up to 47 days in some cases.

It's also alleging the airline didn't notify existing ticket holders for 10,000 flights that they had been cancelled for an average of 18 days, and up to 48 days, between May and July 2022.

This left customers less time to make alternative arrangements and may have led them to pay higher prices.

The ACCC said Qantas continued to sell tickets for the flights on its website for two days or more and delayed informing ticketholders their flights were cancelled for the same period of time for about 70 per cent of cancelled flights.

Qantas cancelled a quarter of its flights between May and July 2022, which amounted to about 15,000, the watchdog said.

Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said the commission had conducted a detailed investigation into the airline.

"As a result, we have commenced these proceedings alleging that Qantas continued selling tickets for thousands of cancelled flights, likely affecting the travel plans of tens of thousands of people," she said.

"This case does not involve any alleged breach in relation to the actual cancellation of flights, but rather relates to Qantas' conduct after it had cancelled the flights."

The ACCC is seeking penalties, injunctions, declarations and costs.

Qantas said in a statement it took the allegations by the ACCC seriously.

"We have a longstanding approach to managing cancellations for flights, with a focus on providing customers with rebooking options or refunds," the airline said in a statement.

"It's a process that is consistent with common practice at many other airlines."

It noted the period examined by the ACCC was a "time of unprecedented upheaval for the entire airline industry".

"We will examine the details of the ACCC's allegations and respond to them in full in court."

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said they were "deeply concerning allegations".

"This is the consumer watchdog doing its job and a reminder that businesses need to do the right thing by people - breaches of consumer law carry heavy penalties," Dr Chalmers said in a statement.

The government has initiated a competition review and aviation white paper to identify issues in the sector which need fixing.

The federal opposition is also pursuing the government over a decision to block Qatar Airways from boosting the number of flights into the country - a move described by critics as protecting Qantas.

© AAP 2023