Morrison’s recovery mission
Scott Morrison has set up a high-level bushfire recovery agency as more lives were lost and hundreds more homes torched over the weekend, with the government no longer able guarantee a budget surplus because of the economic hit from the disaster. The Fin
Glencore considered Fortescue takeover in 2016
Mining giant Glencore weighed up a takeover deal for billionaire Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue Metals Group as it considered pursuing a “big bang” acquisition to gain exposure to iron ore. The Aus
Fashion tsar to forgo debt
Perth Glory boss Tony Sage is owed more than half a million dollars by Perth Fashion Festival but says he will forgo the cash in favour of the broke management outfit paying other creditors. The West
Frydenberg calls in insurers
Insurance company representatives and their federal regulators have been called to a meeting in Canberra as the government moves to ensure people who lose property from the bushfires are promptly and fairly dealt with. The Fin
Underpayment cases to shape 2020
While corporate Australia licks its wounds following widespread regulatory and reputational fallout of the banking royal commission, KPMG Australia’s chairman Alison Kitchen has urged big business to brace for the next challenge to its reputation – chronic underpayment of staff. The Fin
Big investors won’t shut up about climate change
Companies should expect a surge in shareholder activism on climate change risk in 2020 as major investors become more confident in taking on directors, according to one of the leaders of global investor movement Climate Action 100+. The Fin
Rates-defying credit card sting ‘outrageous’
Banks are facing criticism for failing to pass on rate cuts to credit card customers, with borrowers commonly slugged about 20 per cent despite the cash rate being at record lows. The Aus
Housing set for recovery: Lendlease
The Australian residential property market is set for an upturn in 2020, boosted by lower interest rates, easier credit for housing and the First Home Buyers Deposit Scheme, which launched on January 1, according to Lendlease property chief executive Kylie Rampa. The Aus
US rates likely to stay on hold, Fed indicates
Officials at the US Federal Reserve see no reason to alter the course of monetary policy in the months to come, minutes from their last rate-setting meeting suggest. The Aus
Underpaid in the line of duty
A $24 million financial underpayment scandal engulfing the AFP has widened with almost 4000 officers not only being underpaid superannuation entitlements, but hundreds also not being paid for overtime or excess hours worked. The West
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Scott Morrison has set up a high-level bushfire recovery agency as more lives were lost and hundreds more homes torched over the weekend, with the government no longer able guarantee a budget surplus because of the economic hit from the disaster.
Page 2: While corporate Australia licks its wounds following widespread regulatory and reputational fallout of the banking royal commission, KPMG Australia’s chairman Alison Kitchen has urged big business to brace for the next challenge to its reputation – chronic underpayment of staff.
Page 3: Progress on adapting the century-old international tax system for the digital age faces a critical test in 2020, as Australia awaits progress on co-operation by 130 nations.
Page 4: Insurance company representatives and their federal regulators have been called to a meeting in Canberra as the government moves to ensure people who lose property from the bushfires are promptly and fairly dealt with.
Page 7: The independent tax watchdog is investigating about $15 billion in small business debt to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), making up more than 60 per cent of all outstanding revenue in the country
Page 12: Global equity markets could be rocked by a savage correction if tensions between the United States and Iran escalate and a jump in the oil price is sustained.
Page 13: The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is investigating listed wealth manager Evans Dixon over the advice provided to some of its clients after the corporate watchdog received several complaints over 2019.
Page 14: Companies should expect a surge in shareholder activism on climate change risk in 2020 as major investors become more confident in taking on directors, according to one of the leaders of global investor movement Climate Action 100+.
Page 16: Qantas Airways is the only Australian airline to feature in OAG’s latest punctuality report. However, the national carrier’s ranking still nosedived as it was unable to match its Indonesian and Panamanian peers in 2019.
Page 17: Caltex Australia’s looming loss of its household brand name may play into the hands of its Canadian suitor Alimentation Couche-Tard, as analysts count the cost of its rebranding to lesser-known Ampol while already stiff competition in fuels retailing intensifies.
Page 26: Economists are worried the rapid rate of technological change is hurting the quality of key measurements of national economic growth and productivity.
Page 29: Fund managers and corporate-like family enterprises are set to dominate major transactions in the rural property sector in 2020 – as they did in 2019 – as the ever increasing global demand for Australian commodities such as beef, citrus, nuts and wool drives a push for economies of scale.
The Australian
Page 2: More than 24,500 homes and businesses in the south of NSW may be without electricity for the rest of the week, despite cooler temperatures easing the immediate threat to the power grid.
Page 4: Banks are facing criticism for failing to pass on rate cuts to credit card customers, with borrowers commonly slugged about 20 per cent despite the cash rate being at record lows.
Page 6: Japan’s justice minister has called the flight of former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn as he awaited trial on financial misconduct charges inexcusable and is vowing to beef up immigration checks.
Page 12: Donald Trump’s assassination of the Quds Force leader could unleash a wave of recriminatory attacks
Page 13: Mining giant Glencore weighed up a takeover deal for billionaire Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue Metals Group as it considered pursuing a “big bang” acquisition to gain exposure to iron ore.
Page 13: The Australian residential property market is set for an upturn in 2020, boosted by lower interest rates, easier credit for housing and the First Home Buyers Deposit Scheme, which launched on January 1, according to Lendlease property chief executive Kylie Rampa.
Page 14: Officials at the US Federal Reserve see no reason to alter the course of monetary policy in the months to come, minutes from their last rate-setting meeting suggest.
Page 16: Australia’s power networks were designed to deliver power from large, baseload thermal generators providing strong stability. It is now being asked to deliver power from widely dispersed, intermittent renewable generators, supported by “firming” plant such as gas generators or pumped hydro to ensure reliable supply.
The West Australian
Page 3: Medical equipment worth hundreds of thousands of dollars has gone missing, or been stolen, from Perth hospitals in the past three years.
Page 5: Perth Glory boss Tony Sage is owed more than half a million dollars by Perth Fashion Festival but says he will forgo the cash in favour of the broke management outfit paying other creditors.
Page 9: Emergency services will today begin evacuating stranded travellers at Caiguna roadhouse as authorities prepare for Wednesday which looms as a critical day in the fight to reopen fireaffected highways in the Goldfields.
Page 18: A $24 million financial underpayment scandal engulfing the AFP has widened with almost 4000 officers not only being underpaid superannuation entitlements, but hundreds also not being paid for overtime or excess hours worked.
Page 38: Plenty of WA’s craft brewers rightfully lay claim to using WA-grown barley in their brews but a Busselton-based newcomer is one of the few that can also boast using its own grown hops.