Morning Headlines

Lake Resources rejects criticism as shares fall

Lake Resources has hit back at a short seller report, claiming it contained ‘‘incorrect information’’ and ‘‘inaccurate assertions’’ about its direct lithium extraction technology and its prospects to apply it on a commercial scale. The Fin

Retailers lobby chief quits, vape push continues

National Retail Association chairman Mark Brodie has resigned after a tumultuous year, with the board in turmoil as the group battled revelations of mysterious funding behind its lobbying for e-cigarettes. The Fin

End-of-year party for Pilbara miners

Pilbara iron ore miners look to have ended the financial year with a wet sail with ports data

suggesting Fortescue Metals Group might have beaten its upwardly revised annual production guidance. The West

Roaring jobs spur on rate rises

Stunning June jobs data all but guarantees the Reserve Bank of Australia will lift the official interest rate by 0.5 percentage points for a third straight month to 1.85 per cent in August, with some economists even tipping a 0.75 percentage point increase. The Fin

Battling fintech sees openings in MYOB deal

ANZ could quickly build a small business banking technology ecosystem by buying MYOB, which has been quietly building stakes in lending and human resource software providers under its private equity ownership model. The Fin

Telstra completes Digicel deal

Telstra has completed its takeover of Digicel Pacific on behalf of the federal government, which funded the $US1.6 billion ($2.4 billion) deal fearing it may be picked up by a Chinese state-owned entity and used for espionage. The Fin

New Covid crisis splits PM, allies

Anthony Albanese will convene an emergency meeting of national cabinet on Monday as his government is accused by state ALP leaders and union bosses of delivering mixed messages on the Covid-19 pandemic and withdrawing support measures at the worst possible time. The Aus

Field narrows for BGC sell-off

The sale process for the building materials empire of the late Len Buckeridge has entered round two, and apparently the family owners have an Australian group contending for an acquisition of the business as a whole. The Aus

Twiggy’s $8.8m stiff cheese

Almost $8.8 million has been wiped off the value of Andrew Forrest’s stake in Bega Cheese after shares tanked on news its earnings were likely to be impacted by higher farm-gate milk prices. The West

Lifeline to train staff to support FIFO abused

WA’s peak resources sector lobby group has teamed up with Lifeline WA to create specialist sexual harassment and assault training for fly-in, fly-out workers should peers turn to them after experiencing abuse. The West

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: Stunning June jobs data all but guarantees the Reserve Bank of Australia will lift the official interest rate by 0.5 percentage points for a third straight month to 1.85 per cent in August, with some economists even tipping a 0.75 percentage point increase.

Page 3: National Retail Association chairman Mark Brodie has resigned after a tumultuous year, with the board in turmoil as the group battled revelations of mysterious funding behind its lobbying for e-cigarettes.

Page 4: The 32-year-old data analyst is now earning more than $200,000 a year, after starting out his first job in Australia just five years ago on $85,000. That’s a pay rise of 135 per cent in five years.

Page 7: BHP Minerals Australia president Edgar Basto has said the Palaszczuk government’s coal royalties increase is a backward step that will damage future resource investments in Queensland.

Page 18: ANZ could quickly build a small business banking technology ecosystem by buying MYOB, which has been quietly building stakes in lending and human resource software providers under its private equity ownership model.

Lake Resources has hit back at a short seller report, claiming it contained ‘‘incorrect information’’ and ‘‘inaccurate assertions’’ about its direct lithium extraction technology and its prospects to apply it on a commercial scale.

Page 19: Telstra has completed its takeover of Digicel Pacific on behalf of the federal government, which funded the $US1.6 billion ($2.4 billion) deal fearing it may be picked up by a Chinese state-owned entity and used for espionage.

The Australian

Page 1: Anthony Albanese will convene an emergency meeting of national cabinet on Monday as his government is accused by state ALP leaders and union bosses of delivering mixed messages on the Covid-19 pandemic and withdrawing support measures at the worst possible time.

Page 3: The McGowan government was on Thursday preparing to move 21 boys from Western Australia’s juvenile detention centre to a maximum security men’s jail, five months after a Perth judge exposed a dehumanising and degrading regime at the children’s prison and called it unlawful.

Page 5: Amid a rapid escalation in nursing homes dealing with a Covid outbreak, aged-care providers are urging the Albanese government to extend the support being provided by the Australian Defence Force beyond the current August 12 deadline.

Page 15: Regulators are preparing to probe ANZ’s mooted $4bn-plus MYOB deal due to concerns about data use and the creation of a business that could impede competition in small business and other loans.

Page 16: The sale process for the building materials empire of the late Len Buckeridge has entered round two, and apparently the family owners have an Australian group contending for an acquisition of the business as a whole.

Page 19: TPG Telecom and Telstra allege rival Optus is scaremongering and being emotionally manipulative in its bid to stop a proposed $1.8bn network-sharing deal.

The West Australian

Page 4: WA’s Chief Health Officer is strongly encouraging everyone to wear a mask indoors but has yet to recommend a mandate expansion as the number of COVID-infected patients in the State’s hospitals reaches a record high.

Page 5: A biosecurity expert has warned the first case of foot-and-mouth disease to spread from Indonesia to Australia is likely to be detected in WA — and it’s not a matter of if, but when.

Page 7: Milk has become the latest household staple to rocket in the cost-of-living crisis, with shoppers at Coles and Woolworths facing rises of up to 20 per cent for the supermarkets’ branded products.

Page 8: Most West Australians believe Qantas failed to adequately prepare for the return of post-pandemic travel — with 41 per cent keen to see the departure of chief executive Alan Joyce over the chaotic scenes playing out at airports nationwide.

Page 9: A baggage handler has claimed more than half of Qantas and Jetstar flights leaving Perth Airport are missing luggage and one person is being sent to unload entire planes, creating long delays that inevitably snowball into cancellations.

Business: Another record low unemployment rate — the lowest in 50 years — has economists now anticipating the Reserve Bank of Australia could hike interest rates by 75 basis points for the first time in nearly 30 years.

Australia exported a record 82.6 million tonnes of LNG in the 2022 financial year, helped by a 9 per cent jump in West Australian production to 46.9Mt, as countries scrambled for non-Russian gas.

WA’s mining giants will need to crack down on perpetrators of sexual harassment if the sector is to see any meaningful change, a Perth human resources professional has said.

WA’s peak resources sector lobby group has teamed up with Lifeline WA to create specialist sexual harassment and assault training for fly-in, fly-out workers should peers turn to them after experiencing abuse.

Pilbara iron ore miners look to have ended the financial year with a wet sail with ports data suggesting Fortescue Metals Group might have beaten its upwardly revised annual production guidance.

Almost $8.8 million has been wiped off the value of Andrew Forrest’s stake in Bega Cheese after shares tanked on news its earnings were likely to be impacted by higher farm-gate milk prices.

Falling copper prices suggest that investors are negative on the outlook for the economy, a commodity strategist at ANZ says.