Morning Headlines

Future of FIFO mines is residential, says Pitt

The coronavirus crisis will prompt mining and energy companies to permanently reduce their reliance on fly-in fly-out (FIFO) workers in favour of those who live close to mines, says federal Resources Minister Keith Pitt. The Fin

ALP, unions pressed on jobs subsidy

The Coalition is urging Labor and trade unions to support special legislation that would allow bosses to cut workers’ hours to reduce wage costs and fasttrack the $1500 JobKeeper payments, saying it was not an attempt to permanently water down conditions. The Fin

Border clamp is working to flatten curve

The lockdown of Australia’s international borders is helping to slow significantly the increase in new coronavirus cases and flatten the curve, health experts say. The Fin

Network boom as we home phone

Australia’s major telephone networks have experienced a surge of demand for Voice over Wi-Fi services, with Optus recording a Zoom data volume increase of 1125 per cent over the last week of March compared with the month of February. The Aus

The million dollar near miss

The Office of the Auditor General was handed details of payments to two apparent shell firms used by senior public servant Paul Whyte in his alleged multimillion dollar rort of the Department of Communities in late 2018 but they escaped the scrutiny of a focus audit because they were “outside the scope”. The West

Drought broken, farmers battle for funds to restock, plant crops

Farmers are banging down the door of a federal government agency tasked with doling out $4 billion in loans amid fears a finance squeeze will limit agricultural production just when Australia needs it most. The Fin

Testing waters for a shorter ATAR

Year 12 students could sit shortened ATAR exams at the end of the year and be assessed against a reduced curriculum under options being considered by the State Government. The West

Covid curve for Coalition: voters back PM’s rescue plans

Australians have rallied behind Scott Morrison in a surge of support for his leadership and management of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Prime Minister recording the highest approval ratings for a national leader in more than a decade. The Aus

AMP kills banned commissions early

AMP will switch off lucrative commission payments owed to financial advisers eight months ahead of the legislated deadline, in a move affected small business owners complain is not in the spirit of coronavirus crisis relief. The Fin

360,000 sign up for early super release

More than 360,000 superannuation fund members have rushed the Australian Taxation Office to register for the early release of their retirement savings in just three days, in a move that is expected to put a squeeze on cash for the nation’s super funds. The Aus

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: The Coalition is urging Labor and trade unions to support special legislation that would allow bosses to cut workers’ hours to reduce wage costs and fasttrack the $1500 JobKeeper payments, saying it was not an attempt to permanently water down conditions.

Page 3: The lockdown of Australia’s international borders is helping to slow significantly the increase in new coronavirus cases and flatten the curve, health experts say.

Page 4: AMP chairman David Murray and Wesfarmers chairman Michael Chaney are leading a coalition of heavyhitting directors pushing for a temporary and targeted safe harbour against regulatory lawsuits and class actions.

Use of public transport, as well as visits to shops and parks, have dropped 45 per cent or more and the length of time people are staying at home has jumped 13 per cent, according to Google data that tracks the location of your mobile phone.

Page 6: More than $25 million in CEO and senior executive pay has been cut in response to the coronavirus shock but investors are urging the senior management to share more of the pain, including working for free in the crisis.

Farmers are banging down the door of a federal government agency tasked with doling out $4 billion in loans amid fears a finance squeeze will limit agricultural production just when Australia needs it most.

Page 7: The coronavirus crisis will prompt mining and energy companies to permanently reduce their reliance on fly-in fly-out (FIFO) workers in favour of those who live close to mines, says federal Resources Minister Keith Pitt.

Page 11: President Donald Trump warns deaths from the coronavirus in the US will rise over the next one to two weeks, possibility on par with the number of fatalities in the two world wars.

Page 12: Construction sites across Singapore will shut down this week as the government closes many workplaces and all schools after a spike in new COVID-19 infections.

Page 15: Global and domestic private equity firms are keen to take minority stakes in listed Australian companies as part of the wave of equity recapitalisations to be put to investors in coming weeks.

Page 18: Travel agents are seeking a pause on credit-card chargebacks, part of a move it says would relieve pressure on an industry smashed by the coronavirus.

Page 19: AMP will switch off lucrative commission payments owed to financial advisers eight months ahead of the legislated deadline, in a move affected small business owners complain is not in the spirit of coronavirus crisis relief.

The Australian

Page 1: Australians have rallied behind Scott Morrison in a surge of support for his leadership and management of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Prime Minister recording the highest approval ratings for a national leader in more than a decade.

Doctors will be able to detect someone’s risk of falling severely ill with COVID-19, their immunity to the disease and when they can go back to work, under a world-first test being adapted by Australian researchers.

Page 2: Australia’s major telephone networks have experienced a surge of demand for Voice over Wi-Fi services, with Optus recording a Zoom data volume increase of 1125 per cent over the last week of March compared with the month of February.

Page 3: Police officers will be deployed to supermarkets this week after Woolworths and Coles pledged to dramatically escalate their social distancing policies in an effort to stem the spread of COVID-19 ahead of the Easter rush.

Page 6: Dads on rescue missions, retirees, teachers, families with medical issues; of the more than 300 Australians stranded in Cambodia ahead of an expected crackdown there by the Hun Sen regime each faces their own unique predicament.

Page 13: More than 360,000 superannuation fund members have rushed the Australian Taxation Office to register for the early release of their retirement savings in just three days, in a move that is expected to put a squeeze on cash for the nation’s super funds.

Fund managers and super investors have injected more than $2.5bn into Australian listed companies in the past fortnight to keep them afloat as the economy grapples with the fallout from coronavirus.

Page 15: Global Swedish department store H&M has closed its 49 stores in Australia, affecting the jobs of more than 1300 staff and joining a growing list of local retailers shutting down in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

The West Australian

Page 1: AFL clubs are likely to be declared exempt from WA’s border closure if the season restarts while the drastic travel ban is still in place.

Page 3: Year 12 students could sit shortened ATAR exams at the end of the year and be assessed against a reduced curriculum under options being considered by the State Government.

Page 9: About 10 per cent of Australia’s coronavirus cases are the result of community transmission, with the number of people infected by the virus rising 139 yesterday to 5687.

Page 16: The Office of the Auditor General was handed details of payments to two apparent shell firms used by senior public servant Paul Whyte in his alleged multimillion dollar rort of the Department of Communities in late 2018 but they escaped the scrutiny of a focus audit because they were “outside the scope”.

Business: Orders have rocketed for Perth’s meal kit delivery businesses, with more and more households choosing to have ingredients for their meals delivered amid the coronavirus outbreak.

A softening of bankruptcy rules will deliver debt relief to Australians suddenly struck by financial problems during the coronavirus downturn.

Sons of Gwalia founder Peter Lalor, a man credited with helping revive WA’s gold industry and a figure central to one of the State’s ugliest corporate collapses, has died.

Australian investors have already lost more than $2.3 billion of anticipated dividend payments and this could severely blow out over the next five weeks if banks are forced to cut their shareholder pay-outs this profit reporting season.