News Articles for Wesfarmers

Wesfarmers has acquired a 13.7 per cent shareholding in Quadrant Energy, less than three weeks after the oil and gas producer was established as an independent company.

Entrepreneur became a dirty word in WA. Thankfully that was just a phase.

Politics and academia are a volatile mix, as the handling of the Bjorn Lomborg initiative at UWA has shown.

Michael Chaney's return to Wesfarmers confirms his standing as the most influential company director in WA. Click through to see our listing of the 12 Most Influential company directors in WA.

The ‘iron ore wars' and budget battles are defining where power and influence lies in business and politics in WA. Read our latest Most Influential feature to see who is on the rise, whose influence is waning and who has dropped off the list.

The view from outside of Australia is particularly upbeat for WA, so maybe it's time to focus on the positives.

Explosives and chemicals manufacturer Orica has posted a 3 per cent dip in half-year profit to $211 million after being affected by reduced demand for its products in the mining sector.

Michael Chaney will take the role of chairman of conglomerate Wesfarmers when Bob Every retires at the company's next annual general meeting in November.

If wealth creation is not growing, tinkering with a broken tax system isn't going to achieve much.

Woodside Petroleum chairman Michael Chaney has set himself an ambitious goal, telling shareholders he wants to more than double the number of women on the company's board over the next two years.

Big retailers will be hoping the federal government puts most recommendations from the recent competition policy report in the too-hard basket.

Only four out of Western Australia's top 20 companies currently meet a gender target set by the Australian Institute of Company Directors, which wants women to fill 30 per cent of board positions on S&P/ASX 200 companies within three years.

Asset sales, cost cutting and restructuring are under way across WA, creating opportunities for professional services firms. Click through to see details of more than 30 privatisation deals in WA, from 1961 to the present day.

The third daughter of late mining heir Michael Wright has succeeded in her bid to extract much more than she was left from his will, with a judge ruling she should get $25 million.

Some of the biggest names in WA business will help nurture the next wave of philanthropists in the state as part of an innovative program to raise money for the children's hospital.

Retailers and hospitality operators in the city have cashed in on the tour of The Giants, with 1.4 million people filling City of Perth streets for three days for the opening show of the Perth Inte

This week, I started posting articles on how BNiQ, our searchable database, can help you delve into Western Australian companies and people in a previously unavailable way.

Property investor BWP Trust has purchased a Bunnings Warehouse in Melbourne from Bunnings Group for about $32 million.

Independent schools across the state are benefiting from the experience some of Perth's most prominent business leaders have brought to their boards, providing greater diversity and structure to the decision-making process.

Internet service provider iiNet has recruited Officeworks chief financial officer Michael Howard to fill one gap in its executive team, as it seeks a replacement for another senior executive role.

In just its second year in the tightly held retail gas market, Wesfarmers' Kleenheat brand has stirred up intense competition among business customers.

A new report by Deloitte has found 37 of the world's top 250 retailers are now operating in Australia, 23 of which have set up shop in Western Australia.

The international stage has helped this year's local business and political leaders stand out from the pack – including our Person of the Year, Richard Goyder.

Department store chain Kmart is set to move its Western Australian distribution centre from Canning Vale to Jandakot, with plans in motion to establish a $40 million facility at Jandakot Airport.

The tougher business climate has prompted some WA companies to cut executive salaries, but most have held the line and some have even awarded pay rises.

Curtin University has unveiled the first phase of a new multi-million dollar business education precinct, made possible through a $1 million sponsorship from Wesfarmers.

The stubbornly high currency is widely expected to slide below US70 cents, with upside for some sectors and pain for others.

Twenty years after Wesfarmers bought Bunnings in a contentious takeover, we reflect on the family that started one of Australia's biggest retail successes.

Andrew and Nicola Forrest's Minderoo Group has recruited finance executive Aaron Hood to take charge of its expanding commercial investment activities.

Wesfarmers has donated $5 million to the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research to help recruit a leader for what will be the first centre in Western Australia to focus on women's cancers.

A partnership between Wesfarmers and an indigenous art group has generated a new business opportunity.

Wesfarmers has reported direct community investment of $44.6 million for the 2013-14 financial year, with social welfare and health the largest areas of expenditure.

Property investor BWP Trust has announced plans to purchase a site in Australind, near Bunbury, where associated company Bunnings Group intends to build a new warehouse store.

Coles stores in Western Australia will be selling WAFarmers branded milk from today, with part of the proceeds from sales going to development of the state's agricultural industry.

The peak body representing WA's art sector renews bid for an annual $20 million funding boost.

Founding director of ASX-listed mortgage management firm Homeloans, Timothy Holmes, has passed away at the age of 65.

About $5.6 million owed to thousands of Western Australians is lying unclaimed in the Department of Treasury's register of unclaimed money database, Treasurer Mike Nahan says.

Woodside Petroleum has appointed former Wesfarmers senior executive Gene Tilbrook to its board as a non-executive independent director.

Wesfarmers has appointed Maya vanden Driesen to the position of group general counsel, putting her in charge of a national team of 42 in-house lawyers.

Our annual Biggest Employers feature has the latest BNiQ data on employment trends in WA, including the companies that are expanding and those that are shrinking, and in-depth analysis of what's happening in mining, construction, health care, accounting, law and other industries.