Global fears soften RBA resolve – The Fin; Ansteel shelves plan for WA mill – The Aus; Workers feel efficiency squeeze – The West; Swan rejects Argus IR reform call – The Fin; Industry claims builders are not ready for new Act – The West
Global fears soften RBA resolve
The Reserve Bank of Australia has been forced to soften its hardline stance on higher interest rates amid concerns the turmoil in global markets is a bigger threat to the economy than inflation. The Fin
Ansteel shelves plan for WA mill
CHINA’s second-biggest steel producer, Ansteel, has abandoned a plan to build a major steel mill in Australia after being deterred by the high costs of manufacturing here. The Aus
Workers feel efficiency squeeze
The biggest survey of Australian workers ever conducted has identified full-time working mothers, “forgotten” blokes and workers aged under 25 as struggling to maintain a foothold in workplaces which are increasingly encroaching on their private lives. The West
Swan rejects Argus IR reform call
The federal government has dismissed calls for industrial relations reform from business leader Don Argus, while appearing to suggest the former BHP Billiton chairman was talking down the economy. The Fin
Industry claims builders are not ready for new Act
WA's building industry says a lack of information about the new Building Act, which comes into effect next month, has left it unprepared for significant changes, including project budgets and the preparation of contracts. The West
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 3: The biggest survey of Australian workers ever conducted has identified full-time working mothers, “forgotten” blokes and workers aged under 25 as struggling to maintain a foothold in workplaces which are increasingly encroaching on their private lives.
Page 4: The government is resisting Tony Abbott's push to reopen a detention centre on Nauru, with Immigration Minister Chris Bowen dismissing it as “an offshore version of Christmas Island” that would not deter people smugglers.
The Reserve Bank will sit on the interest rate sidelines for the rest of the year despite demands from struggling retailers and the housing sector for cuts to put more money in the pocket of consumers.
Page 5: The milk price war between major supermarkets has put at least 20 farmers out of a job and cost the dairy industry millions, Australian Dairy Farmers says.
Page 9: The construction union has threatened that workers could down tools at the Perth Arena in a new hurdle for the trouble-plagued project.
Page 13: WA business confidence is at its lowest since the global financial crisis but second-hand sales are bucking the trend as cautious shoppers seek bargains.
Companies that provide premium mobile phone services including SMS horoscopes and ringtones will face stricter advertising rules under a proposed update to their code of practice.
Page 14: NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell has followed Colin Barnett's lead by jacking up royalties, further gouging revenue from the Gillard government's yet to be legislated mining tax.
City of South Perth mayor James Best has challenged state and local governments to move councils out of a “horse and buggy era” And embrace sector reform as he becomes the latest high-profile leader to bow out at next month's elections.
Page 16: WA employers desperate for skilled workers could find the answer in Ireland.
Page 28: A Liberal Party backbencher has publicly challenged Colin Barnett, saying the state government's landfill levy was flawed and a risk to otherwise sustainable industries.
Business liftout:
Page 1: The banking regulator has sent a message about the strength of the nation's financial sector by declaring that Australian banks will operate under tougher capital rules two years earlier than their global counterparts.
Australian stocks were hit hard again yesterday amid deepening fears that Europe's sovereign debt troubles are worsening and could trigger a full-blown banking crisis.
Page 3: Already battered by headwinds, including strong opposition from environmentalists, WA's fledgling uranium sector is set for more grief amid expectation the nuclear fuel's low price will fall another 6 per cent within the next few months.
Page 6: Financial advisers' claims that federal government changes will squeeze small players have been dealt a blow by estimates showing 98 per cent of advice practices are attached to larger businesses.
Page 7: Ratepayers pump more than $1 billion a year into WA local government but have little way of knowing if their cash is well spent.
Page 17: Perth's CBD investment market has hit the ground running this year, with buyers snapping up more than $600 million of property in the first six months of the year, according to the latest research and forecast report from Colliers International.
Page 20: WA's building industry says a lack of information about the new Building Act, which comes into effect next month, has left it unprepared for significant changes, including project budgets and the preparation of contracts.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: The Reserve Bank of Australia has been forced to soften its hardline stance on higher interest rates amid concerns the turmoil in global markets is a bigger threat to the economy than inflation.
The Australian Taxation Office has yielded to demands made by the nation's biggest businesses by agreeing to significant concessions in the way it audits the sector.
Qantas has won a significant legal victory that removes a hurdle facing its Asian expansion plans, after a workplace tribunal upheld its use of lower-paid New Zealand-based pilots for trans-Tasman flights.
Page 3: Car makers could win a five-year reprieve from the introduction of ambitious new standards for fuel-efficient vehicles, under a plan being considered by the federal government and the automotive industry.
Page 5: Retailers are refusing to service goods bought online from foreign companies in their battle to keep shoppers from straying, the Productivity Commission has heard.
Page 6: Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has accepted Prime Minister Julia Gillard's offer to try to end the stand-off over asylum-seekers by attending a briefing on possible options to restore overseas processing.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard is facing calls to overhaul her office and possibly her ministry if she is to survive in power, as a despairing Labor caucus searches for ways to avoid a catastrophe at the polls.
Page 7: Many Australians are working extra hours without getting paid for them, according to a survey conducted by the Australian Council of Trade Unions.
The federal government has dismissed calls for industrial relations reform from business leader Don Argus, while appearing to suggest the former BHP Billiton chairman was talking down the economy.
Page 8: New export improvement in the second quarter trade did not quite storm the stage but balance of payments data still depicts a global market hungry for our resources and prepared to keep paying handsomely for them.
The Reserve Bank of Australia has kept interest rates on hold for the longest period in five years as policy makers gauge whether turmoil on global financial markets or inflation pose a greater risk to the economy.
Page 14: A leading economic forecaster has put middle-class welfare at the top of the list of what he wants to see discussed at next month's federal tax forum.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Julia Gillard has taken her first step towards enlisting the opposition to restore offshore processing of asylum-seekers, writing to Tony Abbott in defiance of pressure from the Labor Left and the Greens to switch to an onshore regime.
One in four households relies on welfare benefits while one in seven is spending more than it earns, as increasing cost-of-living pressures bear down on families.
Optus has promised not to criticise the National Broadband Network in key regions for 15 years under a deal that raises new warnings the $36 billion project will stifle competition.Page 6: Inflation fears have forced the Reserve Bank’s board to hold its key cash rate steady at 4.75 per cent, despite the panic that has swept world markets over the past month.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso warned yesterday it was ‘‘very important’’ for Europe that Australia implement its planned carbon pricing policy
Neither the government’s Fair Work Australia industrial relations regime nor its predecessor, the Howard government’s Work Choices, have been in place long enough to generate measurable effects on productivity.
Page 10: The corporate and consumer watchdogs will investigate a collapsed solar credits company that operated nationally despite being suspended in Victoria.
Business: The Reserve Bank has warned that world economic growth will slow because of the uncertainty and financial market volatility created by the debt crises engulfing the US and Europe.
National Australia Bank appears to be on the verge of quitting the British market by selling its Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks to a British investment group in a deal worth up to $2.3 billion.
China’s second-biggest steel producer, Ansteel, has abandoned a plan to build a major steel mill in Australia after being deterred by the high costs of manufacturing here.
Magnetite iron ore companies planning projects worth about $20 billion say the Gillard government is ignoring the fledgling sector’s demands for ‘‘realistic’’ levels of compensation under the looming carbon tax scheme.
China’s largest gold producer has raised its stake in Australia’s Norton Gold Fields to 16.98 per cent.
Shares in Foster’s yesterday fell to their lowest level since last month’s US-driven market rout, after market share figures showed it was continuing to lose ground and concerns mounted that the Takeovers Panel would force it to retract upbeat forecast statements.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: First-home buyers, public housing pensioners and 5000 public servants came out on the wrong end of Barry O'Farrell's first budget.
Page 2: The education department will make a last-ditch bid today to stop Thursday's teachers' strike.
Page 3: A man who barricaded himself and a girl inside a law office - claiming to have a bomb - was arrested on Tuesday night after an 11-hour siege.
Business: Australia's top banks have slammed the prudential regulator for speeding up the process requiring them to hold more capital.
Sport: Billy Slater didn't play in the last round of the NRL competition, but he still won the dally M.
THE AGE:
Page 1: Two News International executives have disputed James Murdoch's evidence to the British parliamentary inquiry; A jury has watched footage of convicted gangland murdered Carl Williams fatally attacked with an exercise bike.
Page 2: The UN has found the deportation of a man to Sweden in 2006 breached Australia's human rights obligations.
Page 3: Mentally ill patients in state care are living in "third world" conditions. A Canadian study shows women who take anti-inflammatory drugs early in pregnancy double their risk of miscarriage.
World: Niger has denied toppled Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has crossed into its territory.
Business: Investors are betting interest rates will be cut amid skittish global markets
Sport: Question marks remain over whether St Kilda coach Ross Lyon will be kept on next season.
THE HERALD SUN:
Page 1: Carl Williams' accused killer has told a court it was "kill or be killed" in Barwon Prison.
Page 2: Melbourne businessman challenging his speeding fine in court is expected to win, prompting more motorists to challenge their infringements.
Page 3: the Melbourne City Council has signed a three-year $500,000 contract to sponsor the Grand Prix at Albert Park nine months after Lord Mayor Robert Doyle called for the race to be scrapped.
World: The UN says famine is killing more than 100 children each day in Somalia.
Business: The Reserve Bank has kept rates on hold for a 10th consecutive month.
Sport: Tom Scully is expected to scout out Greater Western Sydney's facilities within days.
THE CANBERRA TIMES:
Page 1: Former CSIRO forestry chief warns the government has no forestry policy.
Page 2: ACT public hospitals miss out on $900,000 in federal funds because they didn't meet elective surgery targets.
Page 3: The ACT government set renewable energy targets without consulting its own advisory council.
World: A 200-vehicle pro-Gaddafi convoy crossed the Libyan border and was headed for Niger capital Niamey.
Business: Australian sharemarket ends its third straight trading session in the red.
Sport: CFMEU/Tradies Club has withdrawn as the Canberra Raiders' major sponsor due to uncertainty over future revenue if gambling and pokie reforms come in.
THE COURIER MAIL:
Page 1: National Australian Workers Union boss Bill Ludwig signed two cheques worth almost $45,000 to settle court costs of a private legal dispute.
Page 3: Moreton Bay councillor and mayoral aspirant Chris Whiting has ridiculed pregnant mums, pensioners and the homeless in an email.
Page 4: Prime Minister Julia Gillard will send her top immigration bureaucrat to meet Tony Abbott in Brisbane on Wednesday.
Page 5: Queensland Health's computer problems are causing delays in producing important data for research and surgery.
Page 7: Travelling to Brisbane Airport has become so expensive by taxi, 58 per cent of travellers are getting dropped off.
World: Out-of-control bushfires are raging in central Texas.
Business: The Australian sharemarket has lost more than five per cent since the start of the month because of concerns over Europe's sovereign debt.
Sport: Melbourne fullback Billy Slater won the Dally M Medal on Sydney on Tuesday night.
