PM, Abbott shut down GST debate – The Fin; Ord River is just a start for China: Barnett – The Fin; Pilbara ore rail plan slips – The West; Rates tipped to fall to GFC levels – The Aus; Big rise in commuters jams transport network – The West
PM, Abbott shut down GST debate
Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Opposition Leader Tony Abbott ruled out increasing or broadening the goods and services tax despite signals from the welfare lobby it is willing to consider raising the GST if there are other concessions. The Fin
Ord River is just a start for China: Barnett
West Australian Premier Colin Barnett wants more Chinese companies to develop the state's agriculture industry, defending a decision to allow a little-known Shanghai property company to develop the second stage of the state's Ord River project. The Fin
Pilbara ore rail plan slips
A landmark bid to build the Pilbara's first genuine multi-user rail line involving QR National, Atlas Iron and Brockman Mining has slipped up by up to six months, highlighting the difficulty of delivering big infrastructure projects in WA. The West
Rates tipped to fall to GFC levels
The Reserve Bank believes it will have to cut rates further, matching or even dropping below the low point reached during the global financial crisis, to keep the economy growing. The Aus
Big rise in commuters jams transport network
Perth's bus and train patronage is exploding beyond expectations, putting pressure on the city's burgeoning public transport network. The West
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Perth's bus and train patronage is exploding beyond expectations, putting pressure on the city's burgeoning public transport network.
Page 4: Homebuyers and businesses are in line for an early Christmas present after the Reserve Bank clearly signalled an interest rate cut is on the way.
Page 10: The state government rolled out the red carpet for Chinese investment in farming, fishing and aquaculture yesterday after granting Shanghai Zhongfu exclusive rights to develop prime land on the Ord River.
Traditional owners the Miriuwung Gajerrong see the Ord expansion as a golden opportunity to create jobs, businesses and farms for Aboriginals and have warned developers about their high expectations.
Page 12: Australians want a fair go, honest politicians and business leaders and balance between their work lives and family, a major survey has revealed.
Australians have gone on a fitness binge – and it is delivering tens of thousands of new jobs.
Page 17: Motorists whose cars break down in the Northbridge tunnel after it is widened to three lanes will be told to stay in their vehicle to avoid danger.
Page 26: The first plans to redevelop the Cockburn Coast have been unveiled, with the former industrial centre set to become a cosmopolitan beachside community with high-rise apartment buildings, offices and a vibrant retail and cafe strip.
Business: A landmark bid to build the Pilbara's first genuine multi-user rail line involving QR National, Atlas Iron and Brockman Mining has slipped up by up to six months, highlighting the difficulty of delivering big infrastructure projects in WA.
Sir Ron Brierley, the famous New Zealand corporate raider, wants to overthrown the board of Perth cash box Murchison Metals.
Singapore's giant sovereign wealth fund, which manages more than $US100 million of investments worldwide, has pounced on Paladin Energy to become the embattled uranium miner's third-biggest shareholder.
Stretched deadlines and rising costs for some mining contractors are creating a perfect storm for fraud, according to a leading Perth forensic accounting expert.
Ruralco Holdings says it does not yet know whether it will bid for Elders' rural services business.
There are fears of an irregularity in the construction union election, following a complaint to the Australian Electoral Commission that a union member has been offering to submit members' ballot papers on their behalf.
An “extraordinary” surge in construction activity as delayed contracts ramp up has led Monadelphous Group to shrug off recent uncertainty with bullish revenue forecasts.
Nathan Tinkler, the biggest shareholder in Whitehaven Coal, has lost control of one of his companies after an Australian court ordered its liquidation over an unpaid debt.
Virgin Australia has blamed uncertain economic conditions and strong airline competition for its reluctance to give firm profit guidance for the year ahead.
Construction is due to start on a major renovation of Cloister's Arcade and on an 11,000sqm office building above the arcade's Hay Street entrance in an $85 million redevelopment planned by the Anglican Church.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Opposition Leader Tony Abbott ruled out increasing or broadening the goods and services tax despite signals from the welfare lobby it is willing to consider raising the GST if there are other concessions.
Corporate leaders have called for politicians to rebuild trust with business before the 2013 election but warned they are losing faith in the political system's ability to produce meaningful solutions to economic problems.
The Obama administration is pushing ahead faster than expected with a Pacific free-trade zone that encompasses about 30 per cent of the global economy and undermine China's efforts for an Asian-based agreement.
Page 3: West Australian Premier Colin Barnett wants more Chinese companies to develop the state's agriculture industry, defending a decision to allow a little-known Shanghai property company to develop the second stage of the state's Ord River project.
Page 4: The federal Treasury has raised questions about the value for money in government spending on education, health, welfare and other services as it looks for ways to reverse a “worrying” slowdown in economy-wide productivity growth.
The International Monetary Fund has raised the status of the Australian dollar closer to becoming a new global reserve currency, as business leaders complain about a destructive influence on the economy from its present strength.
Page 5: Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens warned that the economy's transition from the mining investment boom to other drivers of growth may take time, leaving it vulnerable if a significant gap emerges between the two phases.
Page 6: Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has seized control of critical 4G spectrum auctions amid concerns that the withdrawal of struggling mobile carrier Vodafone could threaten a $3 billion budget windfall.
Page 10: Employers are expected to resist some of the Gillard government's proposed changes to federal discrimination laws, arguing they will cause an increase in discrimination and sexual harassment claims from staff and, therefore, in business costs.
Page 14: Western Australia has revealed it will refuse to support legislation to enact the Gonski school funding reforms until it is revised to protect states' rights after a tense teleconference between the states and Commonwealth yesterday.
The nation's biggest fertiliser maker, Incitec Pivot, has accused gas producers in eastern Australia of reserving gas for customers overseas in a flare-up of tensions over the availability of competitive supplies for manufacturers.
Page 15: Australia's major investment banks may be forced to hold stock exchange licences under a tough new regime proposed by the government to crack down on secretive trading venues known as dark pools.
Page 18: Virgin Australia chief John Borghetti has foreshadowed a slower rate of domestic growth for his Virgin-branded operations and said the takeover of low cost rival Tiger Australia and regional partner Skywest Airlines will make those carriers grow faster than either could on its own.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Private hospitals are warning of nationwide cutbacks to chemotherapy services — and one of the nation’s largest regional cancer treatment centres faces closure — over a decision to slash federal government funding for chemotherapy drugs.
Malcolm Turnbull has sheathed his leadership sword and become a solid member of the Liberal team working towards the election of an Abbott Coalition government next year.
Page 2: More than $8.9 billion will be spent importing wind turbines because of the blowout in the Gillard government’s renewable energy target, providing few if any benefits to local industry, one of the nation’s biggest electricity generators warns.
Julia Gillard has told Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao that Australia wants a code of conduct for rival claims in the South China Sea to safeguard the security of sea lanes vital to Australian trade.
The opposition has demanded that Julia Gillard and Bob Carr explain their lack of action to help two Australian businessmen detained in Dubai for almost four years, when other consular cases receive immediate high-level attention.
Page 4: Record numbers of unemployed people are being financially penalised under Labor for failing to comply with tough dole rules, with the number of those punished increasing by 81,000 in just one year to 174,358.
Page 5: Mining tycoon Nathan Tinkler’s business interests could be examined by the corporate regulator after a NSW court yesterday ordered liquidators be appointed to one of his companies.
Page 6: Business has warned new national discrimination laws could saddle them with huge costs, lead to disgruntled employees ‘‘shopping’’ to get the best legal payout, and make it difficult for bosses to comply with the new rules.
Page 8: The Reserve Bank believes it will have to cut rates further, matching or even dropping below the low point reached during the global financial crisis, to keep the economy growing.
Chinese property developer Shanghai Zhongfu will inject $700 million into the remote East Kimberley to develop a giant new irrigated sugarcane region by 2018.
Business: Stockbrokers who operate their own internal sharemarkets could be forced to trade under a new financial market licensing regime as part of an overhaul of a market system that fund managers and regulators are warning is being compromised by the rise of high-frequency trading and so-called dark pools.
Virgin Australia expects an improved underlying pre-tax profit this financial year, although the airline was unable to say yesterday when it would pay a dividend.
The Australian dollar is poised to join the first rank of global currencies as the International Monetary Fund moves to add the local currency, once derided as the Pacific peso, to its coveted list of global reserve currencies.
Services operator Ruralco sees only upside for the company in the decision of rival Elders to put its rural agencies on the market.
Engineering services company Cardno yesterday saw nearly 20 per cent of its value wiped out after it warned of tough conditions in the construction industry on Australia’s east coast and the impact of Hurricane Sandy on its operations in the US.
China's new leadership seemed inclined towards moderate additional stimulus that would help boost steel demand amid volatile iron ore prices, says Rio Tinto boss Tom Albanese.
BHP Billiton would look beyond the mining sector for a potential successor to chief executive Marius Kloppers, a non-executive director said yesterday.
Corporate raider Ron Brierley has set his sights on junior miner Murchison Metals, seeking to oust its top two executives because of the $7.64 million bill cited to wind up the failed company.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: Amnesty International has described living conditions on Nauru's asylum seeker camp as "completely unacceptable", imploring the Gillard government to begin processing its 387 inhabitants.
Page 2: A company owned by Nathan Tinkler - who is worth more than half a billion dollars on paper - is in the hands of liquidators after he failed to pay $28.4 million owing to a coal exploration company.
Page 3: Former prime ministers Bob Hawke and John Howard were questioned on issues ranging from gay marriage to the Middle East when they took the stage at a Sydney fundraiser on Tuesday.
World: UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon has joined Egyptian-led efforts to broker a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.
Business: International Monetary Fund plans to grant the Australian dollar official reserve currency status could put further pressure on the existing high exchange rate.
Sport: The shoulder charge may be banned from all levels of rugby league after the ARL Commission called for a worldwide ban amid safety concerns.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: Virgin boss John Borghetti supports the expansion of Sydney Airport, but says building a second airport at Badgerys Creek would be a waste of money.
Page 2: Businessman Nathan Tinkler could face personal bankruptcy after liquidators moved on his company, Mulsanne Resources, which owes $28.4 million to a coal exploration company.
Page 3: The National Australia bank will introduce voice-biometric software next year, enabling customers to access details through simply talking.
World: The death toll has passed 100 as Israel continues air raids on Gaza, with 32 people killed on Tuesday.
Business: Despite signs the Reserve Bank of Australia may cut interest rates in the next month, the Australian dollar may still be included in the International Monetary Fund's reserve currencies.
Sport: The ARL Commission's decision to ban shoulder barges in rugby league has been labelled as an overreaction by leading Australian coaches.
THE AGE:
Page 1: Amnesty International shocked at conditions for asylum seekers on Nauru and urges Gillard government to start processing the detainees. New insect lab has imported mosquitoes from India and Africa for experiments to grow human malaria. Doctors want more government funding to dispense drugs to cancer patients or cost of chemotherapy treatment could soar thousands of dollars. Baillieu government to axe an early intervention support for vulnerable youths.
Page 2: Liberals say more asylum seekers have arrived on boats since Labor took government in 2007 than the number of people who live in the remote community of Alice Springs. Nauruan police to pursue two refugees who returned to Iran on wilful damage and riot charges.
Page 3: Suspect in the death of Sarah Cafferkey charged with her murder. IMF plans to grant the Australian dollar status as an official reserve currency which could put further upward pressure on the already high exchange rate. Australian brand wines set for a comeback over the next three years as drinkers upgrade from the cask-end of the market to premium bottled wine.
World: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon attempts to broker a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel as both sides say they are ready to keep on fighting.
Business: Companies struggling to cope with strong Australian dollar should get used to it, say business leaders as IMF prepares to elevate the dollar to the ranks of global reserve currencies.
Sport: Australian opener David Warner struggles in the nets on the eve of Second Test against South Africa as he tries to rediscover his form.
THE HERALD SUN:
Page 1: Third runway planned for Melbourne airport that will bring in thousands more jets. Police swoop on suspect in Sarah Cafferkey murder case.
Page 2: The man who put a hoax bomb around the neck of Sydney schoolgirl Madeleine Pulver gets a minimum 10 years. RBA minutes hint at rate cut for Christmas.
Page 3: Smart phone app could mean the end of paying with cash. Irish exchange teacher brings out her Bernese mountain dog Clunkers to keep her company. Developer wants a wind powered water spout at Docklands as a tourist attraction.
World: The ex-lover of fallen CIA chief David Petraeus says she is filled with guilt and shame.
Business: IMF set to include the Australian dollar in the world's top seven reserve currencies.
Sport: Richmond bans midfielder Dustin Martin from socialising with former teammate Daniel Connors who was dumped by the club in July after the pair took sleeping pills and missed a training session.
THE CANBERRA TIMES:
Page 1: ACT police using speed cameras for general criminal surveillance.
Page 2: The man who strapped a hoax collar bomb around Sydney teenager Madeleine Pulver's neck has been jailed for at least 10 years.
Page 3: Canberra University to reach 21,000 students in the next six years.
World: UN chief Ban Ki-moon calls for a Gaza ceasefire.
Business: The Reserve Bank of Australia hints at a possible rate cut next month in the minutes of its November board meeting.
Sport: Champion jockey Damien Oliver vows to return to the saddle after a 10-month ban.
