Morning Headlines

Wage growth at zero puts lid on rate hikes

Despite a 3.3 per cent increase in the minimum wage last year, the national wage price index increased 2.1 per over the year to June, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said yesterday, the same as the rate of inflation. The Aus

‘Foreign buyers over families’

Mr Wyatt yesterday accused the Opposition parties of favouring “foreign property speculators” over WA families after they moved to block a planned property surcharge outlined in May’s State Budget. The West

Canavan rejects efforts to lift R&D rebate cap

Resources Minister Matt Canavan has played down the likelihood the Federal Government will relax its limit on cash rebates for research and development, saying the $4 million cap was appropriate. The West

Car tax targeted in trade talks

Australia’s luxury car tax and 5 per cent vehicle tariff are in the sights of European trade negotiators, who will mount a “strong case” for Australia to axe the dual hit on motorists in free-trade talks. The Aus

MinRes looks at offshore plant

Mineral Resources has raised the prospect of building a $600 million lithium hydroxide plant linked to its Wodgina project in south-east Asia rather than adjacent to the mine site in Western Australia. The Fin

WA spuds to head east again

WA potato growers could regain access to Eastern States markets by the end of the year, after a big biosecurity effort demonstrated a rare bug found in WA does not carry a damaging bacteria. The West

CSL leads on global profits

Biotechnology giant CSL has laid out a decade-long growth plan to take advantage of its global footprint after returning a bumper 29 per cent increase in net profit to $US1.7 billion and hiking its payout to investors. The Fin

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: Solidarity among the Labor states against the National Energy Guarantee is starting to fray with Queensland believing the states should not block the policy but leave the fight over the emissions reductions target to federal Labor.

Biotechnology giant CSL has laid out a decade-long growth plan to take advantage of its global footprint after returning a bumper 29 per cent increase in net profit to $US1.7 billion and hiking its payout to investors.

An explosive report from ASIC into NAB’s fees-for-no-service scandal reveals a regulator furious at the bank’s failure to acknowledge the serious and systemic failings in relation to an overcharging issue at the bank dating back up to 15 years.

Page 2: The Australian Institute of Company Directors is considering plans to impose a target for women on the boards of small and medium-size companies after a landmark report found that women account for just 15.8 per cent of directors at companies immediately outside the ASX200.

Page 6: The superannuation arm of Commonwealth Bank of Australia rejected advice from APRA to speed up the transfer of 60,000 members to low-cost super funds because of the potential for operational risks, the Hayne royal commission has heard.

Page 12: The Coalition’s plans to screen tax records of firms bidding on Commonwealth contracts could disadvantage longstanding businesses and rule out owners who have had disputes with the Australia Taxation Office.

Page 20: Mineral Resources has raised the prospect of building a $600 million lithium hydroxide plant linked to its Wodgina project in south-east Asia rather than adjacent to the mine site in Western Australia.

Mt Gibson chief executive Jim Beyer will never be happy that a wall collapse caused a four-year outage at his company’s flagship mine, but the changing nature of Chinese iron ore demand in that period has softened the blow.

Page 21: The Perth Mint made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange overnight as the first exchange traded fund with sovereign backed gold.

Page 41: Plans to slap a 7 per cent tax on foreign residential property buyers in Western Australia could be blocked by the opposition.

The Australian                                                                                                                          

Page 2: Despite a 3.3 per cent increase in the minimum wage last year, the national wage price index increased 2.1 per over the year to June, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said yesterday, the same as the rate of inflation.                                                                                          

Page 5: Katter’s Australian Party senator Fraser Anning, who was elected on just 19 primary votes, was savaged almost universally by federal MPs yesterday over his first speech to parliament which referenced the Nazi-era “final solution”, called for an end to Muslim immigration and praised the White Australia policy.                                                                              

Page 6: Health Minister Greg Hunt has defended the Coalition’s record on healthcare affordability as new figures reveal half of Australians are routinely left with out-of-pocket expenses for Medicare services.                                                                                                        

Australia’s luxury car tax and 5 per cent vehicle tariff are in the sights of European trade negotiators, who will mount a “strong case” for Australia to axe the dual hit on motorists in free-trade talks.                                                                                                                                             

Page 17: Wesfarmers chief executive Rob Scott is enjoying an extended honeymoon with investors in the Perth-based conglomerate as its stock hit another all-time high yesterday, with the market warming to his accelerated strategy to shed the company’s coal assets and spin off Coles to pave the way for a leaner and more profitable organisation.                                      

The Australian sharemarket has surged to fresh decade highs, spurred on by earnings-focused investors as the August corporate reporting season hits top gear.

The West Australian

Page 4: The University of WA has dropped two places on the latest international rankings but retains its position as one of the top 100 universities in the world.

Page 11: Mr Wyatt yesterday accused the Opposition parties of favouring “foreign property speculators” over WA families after they moved to block a planned property surcharge outlined in May’s State Budget.

Page 14: Jetsetters on a budget and unable to pay for flights up-front can use buy-now, pay-later schemes to book a holiday after another airline joined the scheme.

Page 16: Pressure on the live sheep industry risks spilling over to the live cattle industry, with regulators confirming they have stopped a ship leaving Fremantle after it failed an inspection.

Business: The McGowan Government will today announce plans to attract the “brightest and the best” international students to study post-graduate courses in WA by making it easier for them to live and work in the State.

Insurance Australia Group’s shares slid to a near four-month low after profit and outlook underwhelmed investors. IAG’s group net profit fell 0.6 per cent to $923 million, despite an almost 11 per cent rise in profit for the insurance division.

WA potato growers could regain access to Eastern States markets by the end of the year, after a big biosecurity effort demonstrated a rare bug found in WA does not carry a damaging bacteria.

Resources Minister Matt Canavan has played down the likelihood the Federal Government will relax its limit on cash rebates for research and development, saying the $4 million cap was appropriate.

Minara’s Murrin Murrin operation has accepted a systemic failure in safety procedures at its Goldfields nickel mine after a worker was engulfed in ammonia and had to be resuscitated