Morning Headlines

Property cooling spreading

There is a “national pattern” of cooling in the property market, with auction results slowing and clearance rates falling more than 10 percentage points over the past year. The Aus

US, China make little progress in trade war

China agreed to buy more natural gas and agriculture from the US after two days of tense negotiations, but the world’s largest economies failed to resolve other sharp disagreements over trade. The Fin

Both tax plans hit rich most

Claims the Coalition’s planned income tax cuts are ‘‘unfair’’ have been slammed in a fresh analysis that shows four in five Australians will be better off while the top 20 per cent of adults will carry even more of the burden, which already sits just below a staggering 80 per cent. The Fin

Vacant shops face rates hike

The owners of vacant shops in Fremantle could be slugged higher rates under a plan to encourage them to drop rents. The West

Weak wage growth could dash government hopes of returning to budget surplus

Wage growth is lagging because the economy is stuck in a cycle of low inflation with poor productivity growth, not because the workforce has lost bargaining power, a new study has found. The Aus

Fortescue unfazed by trade tensions

Fortescue Metals Group chief executive Elizabeth Gaines says tension over international trade will do little to shake positive sentiment around the mining sector, after returning from a major investor briefing in the US. The Fin

Desperate measures to stop rooftop panels bringing down grid

Extraordinary powers designed for emergencies such as major power plant failures or bushfires are being triggered to protect WA’s main grid from soaring electricity output generated by rooftop solar panels. The West

ALP seeks to shift the IR balance

Federal Labor will investigate increasing the number of union appointments to the Fair Work Commission as it promises to boost the powers of the workplace tribunal and counter what it claims is the commission’s “politicisation” by the Coalition. The Aus

British, Italian ship bids given nod for subs warfare

The British and Italian bids to build the nation’s new future frigates have been rated by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute as the most capable anti-submarine warfare ships on offer in the $35 billion SEA 5000 tender. The Aus

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: Westpac’s provision of business loans will be under fire today with the Hayne royal commission poised to take a detailed look at the bank’s role in multiple case studies including examples where guarantors have lost their homes.

Claims the Coalition’s planned income tax cuts are ‘‘unfair’’ have been slammed in a fresh analysis that shows four in five Australians will be better off while the top 20 per cent of adults will carry even more of the burden, which already sits just below a staggering 80 per cent.

Page 3: Nearly 5.5 million Australians tuned in to watch Prince Harry wed American actress Meghan Markle on Saturday night.

Bill Shorten’s putative leadership rival, Anthony Albanese, says Labor is not contemplating losing the Longman and Braddon byelections, setting the bar for the looming test of the Opposition Leader’s voter appeal.

Page 4: The excess value of family homes above a threshold of about $500,000 to $833,000 would be included in the pension assets test under proposals aimed at distributing benefits of government retirement spending more equitably.

Page 7: Sam Sicilia, chief investment officer at Hostplus, the top-performing, $33 billion hospitality industry fund, said the country should expect to see driverless cars on the roads starting from about 2021 because the incentives to solve their remaining problems were huge and the risks had been overstated.

Page 8: CPA Australia has been actively harvesting proxy votes from overseas members in a bid to prevent rebel members from winning a series of resolutions that could transform the way the embattled accounting body is run.

Page 10: China agreed to buy more natural gas and agriculture from the US after two days of tense negotiations, but the world’s largest economies failed to resolve other sharp disagreements over trade.

Page 13: The retail stockbroking industry has said it is being unfairly tarnished by issues exposed in the Hayne royal commission and warned the government against a ‘‘shotgun approach’’ to any new financial services regulation.

Page 15: Ferrovial, the Spanish owner of services group Broadspectrum, is considering setting up waste treatment and recycling plants in Australia but is concerned the continent’s large land mass predisposes it to dumping rubbish in landfill.

Fortescue Metals Group chief executive Elizabeth Gaines says tension over international trade will do little to shake positive sentiment around the mining sector, after returning from a major investor briefing in the US.

Page 16: The Australian Securities Exchange is betting more technology stocks will muscle their way into the top 20 most valuable companies within the next decade, challenging the historical dominance of the big banks and mining companies.

Page 17: A unit of $640 billion British funds management giant Aviva Investors has taken a multi-pronged short bet against Australia in the bond, credit and currency markets as the odds of a housing-related wobble have increased.

Superannuation funds have put plans to tender their group insurance programs on ice as they gauge the fallout from the government’s sweeping changes to the sector, says MLC Life chief executive David Hackett.

Page 18: The 70 family members of Australia’s sixth largest wine company, McWilliams Wines, are being asked to stump up a combined $15 million in a rights issue to bolster the company’s weak balance sheet.

Page 30: The High Court has agreed to hear an appeal by the corporate watchdog in its long-running case against former federal health minister Michael Wooldridge and other directors of the collapsed Prime Retirement and Aged Care Property Trust.

The Australian

Page 1: Federal Labor will investigate increasing the number of union appointments to the Fair Work Commission as it promises to boost the powers of the workplace tribunal and counter what it claims is the commission’s “politicisation” by the Coalition.

A radical plan to alter the definition of autism will be the cornerstone of a push to restrict access to the $22 billion National Disability Insurance Scheme, which could see thousands of people with substantial support needs removed from the system entirely.

Page 2: The British and Italian bids to build the nation’s new future frigates have been rated by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute as the most capable anti-submarine warfare ships on offer in the $35 billion SEA 5000 tender.

Page 3: Funding has been lopped at hundreds of Catholic schools across Australia and federal cuts have been imposed in politically critical areas including Canberra, Brisbane, Sydney and regional NSW, a new study shows.

Page 4: Tensions are mounting in West Australian Liberal Party ranks over a decision not to contest the vacated Labor federal seat of Perth, with dissenters likely to take their concerns to a state council meeting next weekend.

Page 5: There is a “national pattern” of cooling in the property market, with auction results slowing and clearance rates falling more than 10 percentage points over the past year.

Page 17: Plans to allow life insurers to cover medical costs for prevention and rehabilitation have been criticised by doctors, lawyers and health insurers as a backdoor expansion by the sector into health insurance at a time when its future is uncertain following a string of scandals.

Wage growth is lagging because the economy is stuck in a cycle of low inflation with poor productivity growth, not because the workforce has lost bargaining power, a new study has found.

Page 19: The mining sector has come to the rescue of Australian investors as buoyant commodity prices shower shareholders with richer dividends.

The West Australian

Page 1: Extraordinary powers designed for emergencies such as major power plant failures or bushfires are being triggered to protect WA’s main grid from soaring electricity output generated by rooftop solar panels.

Page 3: The State Government is quietly expanding a network of high-tech sensors which allows departments to covertly pinpoint the movement of West Australians through their mobile phones.

Page 12: Premier Mark McGowan says it would be difficult to impose tougher mental health reporting rules for gun licences, warning that people might avoid vital treatment if they felt their doctor would report them to police.

Page 14: The owners of vacant shops in Fremantle could be slugged higher rates under a plan to encourage them to drop rents.

Page 17: Federal WA Liberal backbencher Ian Goodenough has withdrawn support for a parliamentary push to phase out live sheep exports, saying the industry has a “window of opportunity” to lift welfare standards.

Business: WA’s farmers and pastoralists have joined forces to create a fighting fund so they can defend their industry’s reputation when it comes under attack.

WesTrac will this week demonstrate the first models in Caterpillar’s line-up of next generation hydraulic excavators.