Morning Headlines

Santos chief’s seat at MinRes sparks investors’ concerns

Santos chief executive Kevin Gallagher has declared he will stay with the oil and gas producer for at least the next four years after news of his appointment to the board of Mineral Resources caused consternation among investors. The Fin

Miner mulls options as workers are stuck east

DDH1, one of the nation’s largest drilling companies, has warned it may be forced to shift rigs to the eastern states if 135 workers are not let into Western Australia following the state government’s scrapping of its February 5 reopening. The Fin

WA food supply crisis is the ‘worst in memory’

West Australian cafes may have to take carbonara pasta dishes off the menu as the state’s food supply crisis intensifies, leading to shortages of cream, bacon and other perishable items, the deputy chairman of Perth’s biggest independent food distributor has warned. The Fin

Video ‘just doesn’t cut it’ as startups forced to consider relocating their business

Local technology companies say they are being forced to consider relocating interstate as WA’s hard border, and the uncertainty surrounding its removal, severely impedes their ability to operate and remain globally competitive. The West

Unions urge Cash to oppose Qantas bid

Unions have called on Michaelia Cash to intervene in the Fair Work Commission to oppose a Qantas bid to terminate an enterprise agreement covering 2500 long-haul cabin crew. The Aus

Iron ore miners win port export boost

Australia’s most lucrative export industry will be able to dramatically increase shipments of iron ore after a long-awaited review of Port Hedland found its potential was 41 per cent higher than its officially licensed export capacity. The Fin

Full steam for 3pc jobless rate

The Reserve Bank of Australia is forecasting unemployment to fall below 4 per cent for the first time since the early 1970s but pushed back against financial market expectations it would follow other central banks and jack up interest rates several times this year. The Fin

Nando’s axes ‘zombie’ pay deal that denied penalty rates

Nando’s predicts a sizeable jump in labour costs after it moved to pay full penalty rates to staff at its more than 100 corporate stores for the first time in almost 14 years. The Fin

Anger as state flips again on students

Navitas chief Scott Jones has criticised West Australian Premier Mark McGowan for his "confusing and inconsistent rules" on international student entry and warned that students are deserting the state. The Aus

Federal tick for Strike Energy’s urea project

Strike Energy has secured major project status from the Federal Government for its $3 billion Project Haber urea manufacturing facility at Narngulu near Geraldton. The West

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: The Reserve Bank of Australia is forecasting unemployment to fall below 4 per cent for the first time since the early 1970s but pushed back against financial market expectations it would follow other central banks and jack up interest rates several times this year.

Australia’s most lucrative export industry will be able to dramatically increase shipments of iron ore after a long-awaited review of Port Hedland found its potential was 41 per cent higher than its officially licensed export capacity.

Page 3: West Australian cafes may have to take carbonara pasta dishes off the menu as the state’s food supply crisis intensifies, leading to shortages of cream, bacon and other perishable items, the deputy chairman of Perth’s biggest independent food distributor has warned.

DDH1, one of the nation’s largest drilling companies, has warned it may be forced to shift rigs to the eastern states if 135 workers are not let into Western Australia following the state government’s scrapping of its February 5 reopening.

Page 4: Nando’s predicts a sizeable jump in labour costs after it moved to pay full penalty rates to staff at its more than 100 corporate stores for the first time in almost 14 years.

Page 6: Aged care homes and unions have slammed the Morrison government’s $800 retention bonus for workers as ‘‘grossly inadequate’’ and warned that it may not be enough to stop a massive staff exodus triggered by the Omicron wave.

Page 15: Rio Tinto chief executive Jakob Stausholm has vowed to build a less hierarchical, more humane company after an external assessment of the miner’s culture found bullying is systemic and sexual harassment and racism are common.

Santos chief executive Kevin Gallagher has declared he will stay with the oil and gas producer for at least the next four years after news of his appointment to the board of Mineral Resources caused consternation among investors.

Page 17: A 10-year sales contract signed by Nufarm with global energy major BP for a biofuels ingredient has enhanced the opportunity for the farm chemical maker to grab a share of the huge global market opening up for sustainable aviation fuel.

The Australian

Page 1: Scott Morrison has taken responsibility for mistakes made during the pandemic and conceded he underestimated the Omicron threat and shouldn't have raised the hopes of Australians over summer.

Page 2: Defence Minister Peler Dulton says the federal government will stick with the British-designed Hunter-class frigate, despite an array of problems catalogued in an internal Defence Department report revealed by The Australian.

Page 4: Unions have called on Michaelia Cash to intervene in the Fair Work Commission to oppose a Qantas bid to terminate an enter­prise agreement covering 2500 long-haul cabin crew.

Page 5: Navitas chief Scott Jones has criticised West Australian Premier Mark McGowan for his "confusing and inconsistent rules" on international student entry and warned that students are deserting the state.

Page 6: Julian Grill – the former WA politician and lobbyist whose reputation and business were destroyed by two sweeping but largely fruitless Corruption and Crime Commission inquiries – has broken his long silence on the issue to deliver an excoriating account of his and former business partner Brian Burke’s experience at the hands of the watchdog.

Page 7: Ten Network reporter Tegan George has launched legal action against her employer and has named multiple staff members in claims relating to bullying.

Page 13: Future Fund chairman Peter Costello has declared the end of an extraordinary period of fiscal and monetary stimulus, with market volatility in January likely to set the tone for 2022 as policymakers wrestle with a global inflationary outbreak.

Page 15: Kerry Stokes has added to his riches after Boral, controlled by the billionaire’s Seven Group, returned $3bn to shareholders following a set of deals including the sale of its North American building products business.

The West Australian

Page 1: A primary school in Perth's southern suburbs will be shut on Wednesday after an infected teacher taught a classroom of Year 3 and 4 students on the first day of school.

Page 6: Three McGowan Government policy changes in the space of nine days has left international students planning to study in WA grappling with “distress and confusion” — and with just four days left to enter the State.

Page 7: Food distributors servicing everything from restaurants and cafes to hotels, aged-care homes and hospitals have warned they are rapidly running out of key items after severe flooding cut the primary rail link between Perth and the eastern seaboard.

Page 9: A Kimberley hospital was so understaffed that health bosses begged police to restrict the weekend sale of booze to prevent alcohol-induced emergencies.

Page 10: An independent Rio Tinto workplace report has found racism was “common” and “normalised” across its global operations, two years after the destruction of the sacred 46,000-year-old Juukan Gorge.

Page 17: Perth’s property market is picking up pace with the biggest monthly price jump in more than half a year putting the WA capital on par with Sydney.

Business: Local technology companies say they are being forced to consider relocating interstate as WA’s hard border, and the uncertainty surrounding its removal, severely impedes their ability to operate and remain globally competitive.

Strike Energy has secured major project status from the Federal Government for its $3 billion Project Haber urea manufacturing facility at Narngulu near Geraldton.

Mitsui Mining & Smelting is increasing zinc prices this year in annual contracts by at least 35 per cent for the Japanese company’s customers in Asia as supply tightens and freight rates soar.