Morning Headlines

Labor turns screws on mergers

Competition regulator Gina Cass-Gottlieb will get the power to block serial acquisitions and those that entrench the market power of big companies, but Treasurer Jim Chalmers has rejected a ‘‘presumptive ban’’ on mergers. The Fin

Investment ties with China dive to five-year low

Cross-border exchanges, research grants, tourist visits, capital flows and investment between China and Australia are at their lowest levels in more than half a decade despite improvement in diplomatic ties. The Fin

Mayfair 101’s Mawhinney gets bail after being charged over dishonest conduct

James Mawhinney, the man behind the Mayfair Platinum and IPO Wealth investment funds that collapsed owing $211 million, was arrested yesterday and charged with four counts of dishonest conduct while carrying on a financial services business. The Fin

Police note raises claim Higgins may have been drugged

Brittany Higgins has questioned whether she may have been drugged on the night she was allegedly raped by Bruce Lehrmann in Parliament House, and that she wishes the Federal Court had explored this possibility during Mr Lehrmann’s defamation case against Network Ten and presenter Lisa Wilkinson, new court documents have revealed. The Aus

NDIS cost shifting criminal: Shorten

NDIS Minister Bill Shorten has warned the states should not use the disability scheme as a dumping ground to fund support for violent criminals as more cases reveal prisoners with mild intellectual disabilities are accessing the system for housing and help with positive behavioural management. The Aus

Aussies want a steady transition

A majority of Australians oppose a fast transition to renewables amid concern over high power bills, while one in four would reject living near transmission lines, underscoring challenges facing Anthony Albanese to hit green goals. The Aus

It’s all Ola for Uber’s main rival

One of Uber’s biggest rivals, Ola, is hitting the brakes in Australia after telling customers it will “discontinue operations” Down Under. The West

Big banks acting on financial abuse, but techs are shocking

Catherine Fitzpatrick who is at the heart of cracking down on financial abuse in Australian banks, has called out the tech sector for letting “harm happen every day on their platforms”. The West

Crackdown prompted by building site buffoons

WA construction managers with poor site security have been warned after WorkSafe launched inspections. The West

The Australian Financial Review

Page 3: The market share of Coles and Wool-worths is being fragmented as shoppers move to online rivals including Amazon, Temu and Shein for household staples, analysts say, amid calls for competitors to the supermarket giants to be covered by tougher grocery unit pricing rules.

Page 3: The Reserve Bank of Australia will part ways with its top economic researcher as governor Michele Bullock forges ahead with efforts to modernise the central bank after a sweeping independent review.

Page 5: After 14 months, dozens of witnesses, weeks of hearings and allegations of prostitutes, cocaine and corporate credit card spending, the blockbuster defamation case between Bruce Lehrmann and Network Ten has a judgment day: Monday, April 15.

Page 5: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has further dampened the hopes of those looking for welfare increases and other handouts in the May budget, saying it was important that fiscal policy matched monetary policy to see off inflation.

Page 7: Economist Ken Henry is pressing Labor to deploy ‘‘billions’’ of dollars to establish a nature repair market linked to land-based carbon sequestration credits, helping meet business demand for offsets predicted to leap eight-fold if Australia reaches net zero.

Page 9: The chief executive of the Albanese government’s National Reconstruction Fund says his $15 billion pot will give super funds, private equity and banks the comfort to invest in so-called ‘‘nation building’’ ventures that are usually too small to bother massive private capital players.

Page 12: Commonwealth Bank is raking in an extra $1.7 billion of annual profit because more of its depositors hold funds in ‘‘online’’ savings accounts, whereas higher-interest ‘‘bonus saver’’ products are more popular with customers at rival banks, according to Macquarie.

Page 12: ASX-listed Russian miner Tigers Realm Coal is in breach of Australian sanctions put in place after Russia invaded Ukraine, the Federal Court said yesterday.

Page 13: Santos’ planned $15 billion LNG project in Papua New Guinea has struck a further delay and is now targeting a final investment decision next year after initial bids from contractors vying to build it showed it would be uneconomic.

Page 15: Linfox has been ‘‘let down’’ by the fragility of Australia’s rail networks, and some of the logistic group’s customers now refuse to put goods on trains despite the benefit of lower carbon emissions, says chief executive Mark Mazurek.

Page 17: Woodside Energy has accused proxy adviser Glass Lewis of heeding the views of activist shareholder groups and ignoring the dozens of investors who back its climate strategy.

Page 26: The Australian sharemarket finished higher yesterday following a rally in mining shares on speculation of a pickup in iron ore demand from China.

Page 26: CSL’s share price could almost double to $500 as earnings and margins at its massive blood plasma business rise over the next three years, Macquarie says.

Page 29: There is a simple reason why Qantas is making it easier to use frequent flyer points – all those points are burning a hole in customers’ pockets.

Page 31: Australia’s largest student accommodation developer, Scape, is holding up three of its five contract builders to prevent them from going under from soaring costs and supply chain constraints, in the latest sign of the pressures on the commercial construction industry.

The Australian

Page 3: The black sheep of one of Western Australia’s iron ore oligarchs is trying to take his case against his “fraudster” siblings to the High Court in an effort to reclaim a share of the family’s multibillion-dollar fortune.

Page 7: Complains made to private health insurers have skyrocketed by almost 27 per cent in the past financial year, as a report reveals the worst performing funds and ignites concern that Australians are not getting value for money on their policies.

Page 13: Company directors have become increasingly distrustful of the federal government and are being “word down” by new regulation, and Australian Institute of Company Directors survey found.

Page 15: The Carbon Markets Institute has renewed calls for more ambitious emissions reduction targets after releasing a report warning that Australia risks falling short of its current net zero goal unless urgent action is taken to bolster the nation’s carbon credit scheme.

Page 16: National Australia Bank chief executive Andrew Irvine has put forward a broadly positive view on the economy, as he pointed to opportunities for the big four bank and its subsidiary BNZ to work together to capture more trans-Tasman business.

The West Australian

Page 4: Rehabilitating a multibillion-dollar Fortescue Metals Group mining project in the Pilbara won’t make up for the cultural and spiritual damage inflicted on traditional owners, the Federal Court has been told.

Page 8: Japan could work with the AUKUS partners on individual innovative technology projects, but the alliance between Australia, the US and the UK is not being expanded under new arrangements.

Page 10: UK-based startup whisperer Founders Factory is coming to Perth, providing budding WA enterprises with access to both the knowledge and deep pockets required to turn a smart idea into a multimillion-dollar business.

Page 19: Osborne Park-based Start Right Homes has been sent to liquidation and regulators say 24 houses have been left unfinished.

Page 23: Businesses are holding on to below-average levels of confidence in the future, despite consumer sentiment sinking further to levels only seen during the early 1990s recession.