Morning Headlines

Markets face trade war fallout

A freeze in negotiations between the Trump administration and China over an escalating trade conflict has skittish investors around the world bracing for months of elevated volatility after another sell-off on Wall Street. The Fin

Cheap houses fall to lows of a decade ago

Analysis of the cheapest 25 per cent of the market by The West Australian shows that houses, units and blocks of land in the metropolitan area fell between 3 per cent and 14 per cent in the three years to last December. The West

PM fails his test: 30 poll losses

Malcolm Turnbull has failed a key test he set for deposing Tony Abbott as prime minister — losing a 30th consecutive Newspoll — but insists he can still win the next election and maintains popular support to remain Liberal leader.. The Aus

Mining $1trn energiser for budget boost

Unexpectedly resilient commodity prices are set to earn more than $1 trillion for the nation over the next four years, a figure equivalent to almost 60 per cent of gross domestic product. The Fin

Bux stops for high-flying trio

The former boss of the Commonwealth Bank and a previous editor-in-chief of The Australian newspaper have quit as high-profile paid advisers to troubled money transfer company Bux Global, which has raised more than $100 million from WA investors. The West

Shorten in rail pledge from WA’s $1.6b fund

Labor will make its first bid to win the marginal WA seat of Hasluck today, announcing $83 million for a new Midland train station and extending the rail line to Bellevue. The West

Alcohol industry gets say on booze controls

Health Minister Greg Hunt has moved to reassert control over the development of a new national alcohol strategy, giving the industry a say on a plan that had threatened to raise the price of beer and wine for everyday drinkers. The Aus

WA homes get worst of NBN

WA households face having some of the worst internet connections in the country, with just 70,000 of the State’s 1.2 million homes in line to get the best service on offer under the National Broadband Network. The West

Nine and Ten offer $900m for cricket

Nine Entertainment and Network Ten have put a new and improved offer on the table for Cricket Australia’s broadcast rights to keep the sport exclusively on free-to-air television for the next six years. The Fin

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: A freeze in negotiations between the Trump administration and China over an escalating trade conflict has skittish investors around the world bracing for months of elevated volatility after another sell-off on Wall Street.

The Turnbull government’s National Energy Guarantee could help deliver increased investment in a fleet of midlife coal-fired power stations to provide further stability in the National Electricity Market, according to federal Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg.

Page 3: The Minerals Council of Australia may hire the head of a carbon capture and storage group as its next chief executive after major member BHP forced out the previous chief for being too coal friendly.

More than 20 bankers have been sacked from National Australia Bank’s central credit risk department as part of the bank’s first wave of a planned 6000 job cuts as the fall-out from the banking royal commission widens.

Page 5: Unexpectedly resilient commodity prices are set to earn more than $1 trillion for the nation over the next four years, a figure equivalent to almost 60 per cent of gross domestic product.

Taxpayers have saved $250 million in postage and telephone costs as welfare recipients increasingly opt to receive information online, the Turnbull government says as it looks to accelerate digital delivery of public services.

Page 6: Global strategic advice company EYParthenon is gearing up to target the $25 billion for-profit education industry, pointing to potential not only for private equity investments but also venture capital, mergers and acquisitions and strategic redirection.

Page 7: Australian airports appear set to benefit from continued growth in Chinese tourists in 2018 with numbers of air travellers arriving from China rising much faster than arrivals from other countries.

Page 8: Treasurer Scott Morrison is being considered by conservative Liberal MPs as a candidate for deputy party leader if there is a challenge to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

Page 13: New Commonwealth Bank chief executive Matt Comyn faces a baptism of fire in his first month in the top job, with the prudential regulator’s report on CBA’s culture due at the end of the month, and the royal commission set to examine scandals in its wealth division from next week.

Page 15: Grocery wholesaler Metcash is facing a rebellion from IGA retailers over plans to reduce their product range, change promotions and ‘‘clip the ticket’’ on about $1 billion of stock now sourced directly from suppliers.

Page 16: International tech behemoth IBM is expecting a significant boost to its Watson Financial Services division in Australia, with the big four banks turning to artificial intelligence in its IT systems to win back the trust of consumers in the wake of the Hayne royal commission and years of banking scandals.

Page 18: Financial advice offered by superannuation funds will come under scrutiny by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

Page 27: Nine Entertainment and Network Ten have put a new and improved offer on the table for Cricket Australia’s broadcast rights to keep the sport exclusively on free-to-air television for the next six years.

The Australian

Page 1: Malcolm Turnbull has failed a key test he set for deposing Tony Abbott as prime minister — losing a 30th consecutive Newspoll — but insists he can still win the next election and maintains popular support to remain Liberal leader.

Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims has taken aim at the nation’s stevedores for levying significantly increased charges on transport companies, warning the waterfront employers could face a backlash from the states over excessive price hikes.

Page 2: A boisterous rally in Perth yesterday heard that persecuted white South African farmers should be allowed to enter Australia under a special humanitarian intake due to the “black apartheid” policy being pursued by new South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Page 4: Health Minister Greg Hunt has moved to reassert control over the development of a new national alcohol strategy, giving the industry a say on a plan that had threatened to raise the price of beer and wine for everyday drinkers.

Page 5: A push to reform aviation laws to reduce crippling costs and red tape appears grounded, with new minister Michael McCormack refusing to embrace changes agreed by his predecessor.

Page 17: Former Woodside Petroleum and Seven Group chief Don Voelte says the Cooper Basin could be seen as a strategic national asset in Foreign Investment Review board deliberations on Harbour Energy’s $13.5 billion Santos takeover bid, and that it may make sense for Scott Morrison to require it be sold separately.

Australia’s smaller telcos have renewed their call for the federal government to ensure that Telstra is cut down to size before the National Broadband Network is fully rolled out.

Up to $200 million worth of Australia’s best young horseflesh will be traded in the next three days as demand for thoroughbred yearlings from domestic and international buyers remains at record highs.

Page 24: Australia will need to keep building homes at record levels every year for the next 30 years to make sure housing affordability does not get worse, a Housing Industry Association research has revealed.

The West Australian

Page 3: Analysis of the cheapest 25 per cent of the market by The West Australian shows that houses, units and blocks of land in the metropolitan area fell between 3 per cent and 14 per cent in the three years to last December.

Page 6: Labor will make its first bid to win the marginal WA seat of Hasluck today, announcing $83 million for a new Midland train station and extending the rail line to Bellevue.

Page 11: The former boss of the Commonwealth Bank and a previous editor-in-chief of The Australian newspaper have quit as high-profile paid advisers to troubled money transfer company Bux Global, which has raised more than $100 million from WA investors.

Page 13: The Federal Government has imposed new conditions on a Perth live exporter at the centre of an animal welfare scandal, as horrific vision was released of sheep dying on trips to the Middle East.

Page 14: Premier Mark McGowan and Mr Cook said yesterday the $1.2 billion hospital would open its doors to patients from next month, 2 1/2 years after it was planned to become operational.

Page 16: WA households face having some of the worst internet connections in the country, with just 70,000 of the State’s 1.2 million homes in line to get the best service on offer under the National Broadband Network.

Page 18: Thousands of WA public servants, including senior executives, will be ordered to take holidays to reduce the government’s more than $2 billion leave liability.

Business: A dissident group of Auris Minerals shareholders looking to seize control of the explorer have ratcheted up their campaign to oust chairwoman Bronwyn Barnes and director Susan Vearncombe.