Morning Headlines

West’s budget outpaces rest of the world

Western Australia has recorded the best budget performance in the world through the pandemic, underpinned by a boom in mining royalties that have shielded the state’s bottom line from the worst recession in nearly a century. The Aus

IFM spurned WA coal-fired power deal

IFM Investors walked away from a potential refinancing deal with West Australian coal-fired power station Bluewaters, which recently had its value written down to zero by its Japanese part-owner, due to ESG concerns about climate change. The Fin

Fortescue cans Pilbara contracts

Fortescue Metals Group has begun cancelling major construction contracts at its troubled Iron Bridge magnetite project in the Pilbara as it grapples with cost blowouts at the project. The Aus

Telstra hit in Greensill downfall

Telecoms giant Telstra, construction group CIMIC and the Australian Rail Track Corporation are caught up in the collapse of Greensill Capital and could be chased down by banks and insurers to pay tens of millions of dollars of bills sold to Credit Suisse’s supply chain finance funds. The Fin

Consumer confidence hits 11-year high as COVID jabs roll out

West Australians have shrugged off their five-day lockdown hangover and are banking on the successful rollout of coronavirus vaccines as consumer confidence across the State reaches an 11-year high. The West

McGowan promises 400 extra nurses for WA hospitals

An additional 400 nurses will be hired over the next two years by a re-elected McGowan Government, helping ease pressure on hospitals across the State. The West

Aussies to receive inducements to holiday at home

The Morrison government will offer incentives to encourage Australians to holiday locally and in aid of battered tourism operators that have been hardest hit by international border closures. The Fin

Biden’s ‘sugar hit’ to drive shares higher

The signing of a $US1.9 trillion ($2.5 trillion) stimulus package in the US could bring welcome relief to the downtrodden equity market, with the ASX set to soar at the start of the week following a sharp rally in US stocks on Friday. The Fin

Albo’s plan to reveal gender salary gap

Anthony Albanese says if he is made prime minister, he will introduce laws to force companies to publicly reveal how much they are paying men in comparison to women as part of a push to close the gender pay gap. The West

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: Telecoms giant Telstra, construction group CIMIC and the Australian Rail Track Corporation are caught up in the collapse of Greensill Capital and could be chased down by banks and insurers to pay tens of millions of dollars of bills sold to Credit Suisse’s supply chain finance funds.

Two of Australia’s richest women, Gina Rinehart and Fiona Geminder, have called for the government to turbocharge the economy by investing in infrastructure and stimulating business investment to build on the nation’s success in navigating the COVID-19 pandemic.

Page 3: The coronavirus pandemic has pushed more Australians to use their phones and smart watches for purchases.

Page 4: Australians are feeling more optimistic about the future as they start to put the coronavirus pandemic behind them, but they still want the government to lower taxes and spend more to help business stimulate economic growth.

Page 5: Doctors warn the federal government’s goal to have all Australians vaccinated by October is too ambitious even as some states beat their targets.

Page 6: The Morrison government will offer incentives to encourage Australians to holiday locally and in aid of battered tourism operators that have been hardest hit by international border closures.

Page 7: Unions have blasted plans by Deliveroo to hand out almost $30 million in cash payments to its riders in the wake of a potential $12 billion float as a ‘‘smokescreen’’ for a bigger battle over labour laws.

Page 14: A bungled enterprise deal negotiated last year provoked a massive rift among the nation’s vice-chancellors and generated an ugly backlash within the academic union.

Page 15: The signing of a $US1.9 trillion ($2.5 trillion) stimulus package in the US could bring welcome relief to the downtrodden equity market, with the ASX set to soar at the start of the week following a sharp rally in US stocks on Friday.

Page 17: IFM Investors walked away from a potential refinancing deal with West Australian coal-fired power station Bluewaters, which recently had its value written down to zero by its Japanese part-owner, due to ESG concerns about climate change.

Page 21: Australia’s untapped offshore wind power potential and fast-emerging hydrogen opportunities have helped make the country the most popular in the Asia-Pacific region among overseas infrastructure investors.

The Australian

Page 1: Australia’s highest paid union leader, United Firefighters Union secretary Peter Marshall, received $470,280 last financial year, $51,000 more than the previous 12 months, and well over double the amount paid annually to ACTU secretary Sally McManus.

The nation’s corporate regulator opened a file into whether a Nine Entertainment insider was involved in possible inappropriate share trading just weeks before the company’s financial results were disclosed to the market last year.

Page 4: Western Australia has recorded the best budget performance in the world through the pandemic, underpinned by a boom in mining royalties that have shielded the state’s bottom line from the worst recession in nearly a century.

Page 13: Fortescue Metals Group has begun cancelling major construction contracts at its troubled Iron Bridge magnetite project in the Pilbara as it grapples with cost blowouts at the project.

Russia is gearing up to take advantage of Canberra’s poor relationship with China to expand its coal exports, analysts say, as Chinese authorities allow some of the millions of tonnes of Australian coal stranded off its coast on dozens of ships to be offloaded.

Page 16: More than 90,000 login credentials linked to employees of Australia’s top mining companies have been found for sale on dark web bazaars, according to a report by Israeli intelligence company KELA.

The West Australian

Page 7: Anthony Albanese says if he is made prime minister, he will introduce laws to force companies to publicly reveal how much they are paying men in comparison to women as part of a push to close the gender pay gap.

Almost half of Australians find it hard to know what is “acceptable anymore” or “wrong” when it comes to disrespect towards women, despite the majority of people agreeing it is where domestic violence starts.

Page 8: An additional 400 nurses will be hired over the next two years by a re-elected McGowan Government, helping ease pressure on hospitals across the State.

Page 11: Allowing pill testing at music festivals would not increase use of ecstasy and MDMA, according to new West Australian research that counters one of the leading arguments against the controversial measure.

Page 16: WA’s former top corruption fighter wants the Department of Communities subjected to a “wide-ranging” inquiry to establish how the State’s worst case of public sector fraud went undetected for a decade.

Page 19: Pensioners and those on social security benefits are set to receive a boost to their hip pockets from next week.

Business: West Australians have shrugged off their five-day lockdown hangover and are banking on the successful rollout of coronavirus vaccines as consumer confidence across the State reaches an 11-year high.

China’s iron ore imports rose 2.8 per cent for the first two months of 2021 from a year earlier, with demand for the steelmaking ingredient supported by a firm consumption outlook.

WA call centres are promising to bring offshore jobs back home after COVID-19 caused mass disruption across the global sector.

More than a third of Australian homeowners are planning to sell in the next five years, looking to cash in on a booming market driven by low mortgage rates and and improving economy, according to a report by Westpac.