Morning Headlines

Union calls for Gorgon closure after cracks found in structures

Chevron is racing to head off a safety disaster at its $US54 billion Gorgon LNG project after finding critical parts are riddled with cracks. The West

Part-timers can ‘double dip’ on JobSeeker

The federal government’s income support will gradually transition from wage subsidies to unemployment benefits, including for thousands of part-time workers on reduced JobKeeper payments who will be eligible to top up their pay with JobSeeker. The Fin

Lowe backs budget blowout

Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe has given the Morrison government the green light to increase debt levels and lock in a budget deficit of more than $200 billion tomorrow to support the economy during its recovery from the virus crisis. The Fin

WA coal crunch as Griffin accused of contract breach

Western Australia has plunged into a coal crisis, with one of the state’s last surviving mines accused of being unable to deliver to its biggest customer. The Fin

Hunting high and low for country WA

The 25-year-old adviser to former Federal agriculture minister Bridget McKenzie will next week take up his new post as the WA National Party’s acting State director. The West

JobKeeper fear for WA firms

Many WA businesses which have had access to JobKeeper will not qualify for the revamped version, according to industry experts. The West

ASIC warns on weaker disclosure laws

The corporate regulator told Josh Frydenberg that continuous disclosure laws were crucial for companies to conduct emergency capital raisings and to promote investor confidence in financial markets, days before the Treasurer relaxed the rules to protect directors from being sued during COVID-19. The Fin

Brazil vows to ramp up iron ore exports

Australia’s biggest iron ore rival, Brazilian miner Vale, says the coronavirus’ impact on its workforce peaked in April and it remains confident of accelerating exports over the next six months. The Fin

Forrest-linked China firms on US blacklist

The Chinese company at the centre of Andrew Forrest’s delivery of millions of coronavirus testing kits to Australia has had two subsidiaries black-listed by the US Department of Commerce. The Aus

Work visa incentive a lifeline for unis

The Morrison government has offered a major new incentive for international students to enrol in Australian universities by extending eligibility for highly sought-after post-study work visas to future students who study online from overseas. The Aus

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe has given the Morrison government the green light to increase debt levels and lock in a budget deficit of more than $200 billion tomorrow to support the economy during its recovery from the virus crisis.

Page 3: The corporate regulator told Josh Frydenberg that continuous disclosure laws were crucial for companies to conduct emergency capital raisings and to promote investor confidence in financial markets, days before the Treasurer relaxed the rules to protect directors from being sued during COVID-19.

Page 4: Retailing billionaire Solomon Lew says the extension of the JobKeeper program until March should be ‘‘a big shot in the arm’’ for the Australian economy, but travel industry executives say the opening of interstate borders would deliver a much bigger economic salvation.

Page 5: The federal government’s income support will gradually transition from wage subsidies to unemployment benefits, including for thousands of part-time workers on reduced JobKeeper payments who will be eligible to top up their pay with JobSeeker.

Page 6: Credit and debit card spending in Victoria is up 3 per cent on the same week last year, showing that while the COVID-19 lockdown has restrained consumers, federal government stimulus has prevented a collapse.

Page 10: Businesses should take more responsibility to ensure the cyber protection of their customers, an influential industry panel advising the federal government on its cyber-security strategy says.

Page 11: Executives are struggling to extend their influence into the virtual work space while employees are finding remote collaboration more mentally taxing than in the office, a leading workplace expert says.

Page 14: The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed Downer EDI to consider selling or shutting down its Spotless hospitality business, as chief executive Grant Fenn warns investors to expect a full-year net loss and launches a $400 million equity raising.

Write-downs by Santos of up to $US800 million ($1.13 billion) have axed $US7 billion of asset value from ASX-listed oil and gas producers in nine days, underlining the heavy toll the COVID-19 pandemic is taking on one of the country’s biggest export industries.

Page 16: Australia’s biggest iron ore rival, Brazilian miner Vale, says the coronavirus’ impact on its workforce peaked in April and it remains confident of accelerating exports over the next six months.

Western Australia has plunged into a coal crisis, with one of the state’s last surviving mines accused of being unable to deliver to its biggest customer.

Page 17: BHP may shrink production of its four most important products in the year ahead as the pandemic dents demand for commodities and forces mines to operate with reduced staff.

Page 19: Australian agriculture is way off the pace as it looks to boost farm gate production to $100 billion a year by 2030 and is falling behind in investment, productivity gains and research, according to a major study into the sector’s prospects.

The Australian

Page 2: China has overtaken the US as Australia’s major partner in scientific research after a 13 per cent increase in the number of Australian research papers published in collaboration with Chinese co-authors last year.

Page 5: The Chinese company at the centre of Andrew Forrest’s delivery of millions of coronavirus testing kits to Australia has had two subsidiaries black-listed by the US Department of Commerce.

Page 6: Flight attendants in Australia were discouraged from wearing masks and gloves in the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak because airlines thought they would put off passengers.

Page 13: Extended fiscal stimulus in the form of JobKeeper has helped deliver a $48bn windfall for the sharemarket as risks of a damaging recession recede.

Controversial supply chain financier Lex Greensill pitched his “payday lending for 150,000 public servants” scheme directly to Finance Minister Mathias Cormann during a high-powered meeting with former foreign minister Julie Bishop and former UK prime minister David Cameron.

Page 15: Andrew Forrest’s wealth has reached new heights during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a series of record share price highs for his Fortescue Metals Group pushing his paper wealth to more than $20bn.

Page 16: Oil Search says its revenue dived in the second quarter despite strong LNG production after a steep fall in oil and gas prices, and major Papua New Guinea partners have put a $20bn expansion on ice due to COVID-19.

Page 21: The Morrison government has offered a major new incentive for international students to enrol in Australian universities by extending eligibility for highly sought-after post-study work visas to future students who study online from overseas.

The West Australian

Page 7: Scientists at Oxford University have made a breakthrough in the global search for a coronavirus vaccine but there is a long way to go before it will be known if it can stop the pandemic.

Page 11: Fresh fruit and vegetables are so overpriced in WA’s remote Indigenous communities there is “no way” for people to get their basic nutrients, according to damning submissions to a parliamentary inquiry on the issue.

Page 18: The world’s smallest imaging device to look inside blood vessels has been developed to help scientists better understand the causes of heart disease.

Page 22: The 25-year-old adviser to former Federal agriculture minister Bridget McKenzie will next week take up his new post as the WA National Party’s acting State director.

A long-serving Mandurah paramedic and mental health champion will be announced today as WA Labor’s candidate for the marginal seat of Dawesville.

Geraldton Port has started exporting construction sand to Singapore.

Business: Chevron is racing to head off a safety disaster at its $US54 billion Gorgon LNG project after finding critical parts are riddled with cracks.

Truck drivers across Australia would be regularly tested for COVID-19 under a proposal expected to be considered by National Cabinet on Friday.

Mark McGowan has slapped down the idea of FIFO hubs and revealed he would look at how to stop mining companies flying workers to WA from the Eastern States.

WA start-ups and small to medium enterprise will receive $690,000 from the State Government to help drive the development of innovative products, technologies and services.

Many WA businesses which have had access to JobKeeper will not qualify for the revamped version, according to industry experts.

Fears that Perth will run out of land before the building grants expire are unfounded, with thousands of new blocks to hit the market by December, but country towns are facing a massive shortage.