China fallout hits Woodside gas sale plan
Chinese players were forced to pull out of Woodside Petroleum’s process to sell a stake in its $16 billion Scarborough gas project in Western Australia in the first evidence that the worsening diplomatic hostilities between Australia and China have extended into gas. The Fin
Pandemic forces CEO pay cuts as annual bonuses drop 24pc
Chief executives took a sizeable pay cut this year amid the coronavirus pandemic which has slashed the pay of their workforces, with leading bosses such as Macquarie’s Shemara Wikramanayake, Transurban’s Scott Charlton and Qantas’ Alan Joyce among those to take the biggest hit. The Fin
Economy bounces out of recession
Reduced bank loan deferrals, extended budget stimulus and lower borrowing costs as well as a faster COVID-19 reopening have triggered the sharpest rise in consumer confidence and property buying intentions since records were kept. The Fin
Minister’s comments sparked sell-off
WA pastoralist and mining entrepreneur Brent Smoothy says a $50 million turnover of his farming portfolio in the past 18 months was triggered by the State Agriculture minister’s negative stance on live export. The West
ASIC spends $1.5m on leadership gurus
The corporate watchdog shelled out $1.5 million over the past two years to consultants to provide coaching and organisational psychologists for senior regulators, assessments by coworkers of top executives, and advice on how to implement the agency’s ‘‘governance framework’’. The Fin
‘Stop the Steal’ agitators ditch favourite apps
Facebook and other social media platforms are facing a wave of conservative backlash over their crackdowns on efforts to delegitimise the results of the presidential election. The Fin
Coke Europe says Amatil bid is ‘strong, fair’
Coca-Cola Amatil’s suitor Coca-Cola European Partners has made clear it has no intention of bidding against itself even though four of the Australian bottler’s shareholders have said the $9 billion offer undervalues the company. The Fin
Confidence on the way back for mall owners
Commercial property developers and landlords are stepping up activity as confidence flows into the sector in the wake of advances on a coronavirus vaccine. The Fin
80% say Joe won, move on
Nearly 80 per cent of Americans, including more than half of all Republicans, recognise president-elect Joe Biden as the winner of the November 3 election, according to a national poll. The West
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Reduced bank loan deferrals, extended budget stimulus and lower borrowing costs as well as a faster COVID-19 reopening have triggered the sharpest rise in consumer confidence and property buying intentions since records were kept.
Chief executives took a sizeable pay cut this year amid the coronavirus pandemic which has slashed the pay of their workforces, with leading bosses such as Macquarie’s Shemara Wikramanayake, Transurban’s Scott Charlton and Qantas’ Alan Joyce among those to take the biggest hit.
Page 3: The corporate watchdog shelled out $1.5 million over the past two years to consultants to provide coaching and organisational psychologists for senior regulators, assessments by coworkers of top executives, and advice on how to implement the agency’s ‘‘governance framework’’.
Page 4: While there is broad agreement in Labor that Anthony Albanese needs to lift, there is no consensus whatsoever as to who would replace him should there be a move.
States are expected to follow South Australia’s controversial proposal to slug electric vehicle owners with a new road-user tax, but the electric vehicle lobby says the rollout will discourage uptake of the nascent technology.
Page 9: The Morrison government scraped out a victory last night for its $4 billion JobMaker hiring credit after frantic talks with One Nation had Pauline Hanson reverse her opposition.
Page 10: Australia’s strong response to the COVID-19 pandemic has seen a major turnaround in confidence in the public sector, with nearly half of people surveyed expressing high trust in government, according to research by PwC.
The Health Services Union is launching a landmark work value case to lift minimum wages for the aged care workforce by 25 per cent.
Page 11: The EU says Amazon is leveraging its marketplace for its own advantage, as the European Commission picks another trans-Atlantic fight.
Page 12: Facebook and other social media platforms are facing a wave of conservative backlash over their crackdowns on efforts to delegitimise the results of the presidential election.
Page 14: Chinese players were forced to pull out of Woodside Petroleum’s process to sell a stake in its $16 billion Scarborough gas project in Western Australia in the first evidence that the worsening diplomatic hostilities between Australia and China have extended into gas.
Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest has committed the company to a multibillion-dollar plunge into the renewable energy sector as he seeks to replicate and eventually surpass its success in iron ore mining.
Lendlease faces a $300 million fight against the Australian Taxation Office, after its former tax adviser blew the whistle and accused the company of double counting tax deductions.
Page 16: Newcrest chief executive Sandeep Biswas is undeterred by thin trading volumes on the company’s new Toronto listing and has ruled out a sale of the company’s stake in SolGold.
Page 17: Coca-Cola Amatil’s suitor Coca-Cola European Partners has made clear it has no intention of bidding against itself even though four of the Australian bottler’s shareholders have said the $9 billion offer undervalues the company.
Page 18: Cyber sales such as Black Friday and Click Frenzy are expected to set records this year as consumers make an early start on Christmas shopping, but they threaten to pull forward sales into November from December and add to the delivery logjam.
Page 19: Cash-strapped FAR Ltd struck a ‘‘fire sale’’ deal to sell its prized stake in Woodside’s Sangomar oil project to India’s ONGC Videsh – at a price that may be cheap enough to tempt Woodside to again step in and pre-empt the purchase.
Page 20: The general manager of one of the biggest privately owned wine companies in Australia says he wants certainty on the China imports and tariffs issue as the group bolsters its Australian portfolio with the acquisition of three brands, including Deakin Estate.
The Australian
Page 2: Former ambassador to China Geoff Raby says he is “proud” to be listed on Australia’s foreign influence register as a director of a Chinese state-owned coal company, arguing his personal stake in the Australia-China relationship is there for all to see.
Page 3: A huge spike in calls from people seeking help with relationship breakdowns has sparked warnings that the pandemic is likely to result in an increase in divorce and intensify pressure on the stretched family law system.
Page 4: Divisions within Labor on climate change have deepened after two leading union officials and a former president of the ACTU condemned frontbencher Mark Dreyfus for describing Joel Fitzgibbon as being “out of step’’ with regional Australians on environmental policy.
Page 5: The regulator of medicines in Australia has confirmed it expects to be able to approve the first coronavirus vaccine in late January, with jabs of five million people to begin in March.
The prices of goods and services that can’t be avoided — including rent, utilities and basic food — have risen more than twice as fast as discretionary items, according to research that suggests low-income households, and especially smokers, have borne the brunt of cost-of-living increases.
Page 14: Challenger bank Judo is preparing a $1.5bn-plus ASX listing in 2021’s latter half, hinging on prevailing market conditions and navigating the COVID-19 fallout.
Commercial property developers and landlords are stepping up activity as confidence flows into the sector in the wake of advances on a coronavirus vaccine.
The West Australian
Page 5: An exclusive Anglican school in WA’s South West has revealed to parents that “several incidents” involving boarders have led to a student leaving the school.
Page 6: A long-serving Nationals WA MP has revealed she’s been subject to bullying, intimidation and backstabbing — including “slut-shaming” — within her party.
The head of Andrew Forrest’s mining company has argued it is critical the Morrison Government recognises the importance of selling iron ore to China, amid an escalating trade war with the Asian giant.
Page 16: A Liberal MP has criticised a Bill that would create “safe-access zones” around abortion clinics, claiming women getting abortions could benefit from “well meaning” Christian protesters.
Page 20: President-elect Joe Biden says nothing will stop the transfer of power in the US government as Donald Trump pursues lawsuits in several States in a long-shot bid to hold on to power.
Page 21: Nearly 80 per cent of Americans, including more than half of all Republicans, recognise president-elect Joe Biden as the winner of the November 3 election, according to a national poll.
Business: Former governor Malcolm McCusker’s private and charitable investment companies have failed in a campaign to tweak the board at exploration success story Carnarvon Petroleum.
A Swiss asset manager has taken a $2.4 million stake in Perth-based NeuroScientific Biopharmaceuticals, becoming the company’s second-biggest shareholder.
WA pastoralist and mining entrepreneur Brent Smoothy says a $50 million turnover of his farming portfolio in the past 18 months was triggered by the State Agriculture minister’s negative stance on live export.
Chinese technology giants from Alibaba to Tencent Holdings shed almost $US260 billion ($356b) of market value over two days of frantic selling, as investors scrambled to assess the fallout from Beijing’s broadest attempt to rein in its most powerful private-sector firms.