Aurizon gains POSCO, AMCI port support
A State Agreement for the Anketell port and rail project could be signed before the end of the year, according to Premier Colin Barnett, with the WA Government keen to encourage China’s Baosteel to move quickly on the multibillion-dollar Pilbara development amid falling iron ore prices. The West
Roy Hill chief ‘not concerned’ over iron ore price slump
Roy Hill Holdings chief executive Barry Fitzgerald says the falling iron ore price isn’t of concern to Gina Rinehart’s $10 billion venture, but he has refused to reveal the break-even cost of the project. The Fin
Rinehart calls for urgent action to cut ‘bureaucratic burdens’ on mining
Australia’s richest woman, and developer of the $10 billion Roy Hill iron ore mine, Gina Rinehart, has urged the government to cut bureaucratic burdens as resources companies struggle with falling commodity prices. The Aus
Telstra mulls competing with NBN
Telstra is investigating whether it should copy TPG Telecom’s plan to compete with the national broadband network, in a move that could break NBN Co’s business case and add billions of dollars in expenses to the federal budget. The Fin
Debt debut fuels Nickel West talk
Glencore has moved to tap the Australian debt markets for the first time as speculation mounts the Swiss trading and mining giant will emerge as the buyer of BHP Billiton’s unwanted Nickel West division. The West
Brookes sticks to $160m revival plan
Myer chief Bernie Brookes says he will not budge from plans to invest as much as $160 million this year to fortify Australia’s largest department store chain against a new wave of foreign retailers and are invigorated rival at David Jones . The Fin
Barnett’s shark cull harpooned by EPA
A controversial catch-and-kill shark program in Western Australia will be axed after the state’s Environmental Protection Authority recommended against the policy because of the likely threats posed to a vulnerable species. The Aus
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Federal cabinet has approved a “competitiveness agenda” that will lead to government support for parts of the economy where Australia is strongest and require greater collaboration between businesses, schools, universities and training colleges.
Page 4: Telstra is investigating whether it should copy TPG Telecom’s plan to compete with the national broadband network, in a move that could break NBN Co’s business case and add billions of dollars in expenses to the federal budget.
Page 6: Labor has backed the concept of replacing stamp duty with a property tax as part of a tax reform agenda it is developing to make housing more affordable.
Page 7: Sweden has emerged from a bitter submarine technology row with Germany to mount a last-ditch effort to outbid Japan and Germany for the contract to build Australia’s new submarines.
Page 8: Australians haven’t come to terms with the big hit to income growth likely to be caused by falling commodity prices, raising the urgency of reforming a tax system still stuck in the 1950s, Treasury secretary Martin Parkinson said.
Page 13: Myer chief Bernie Brookes says he will not budge from plans to invest as much as $160 million this year to fortify Australia’s largest department store chain against a new wave of foreign retailers and are invigorated rival at David Jones.
Page 13: BHP Billiton chief executive Andrew Mackenzie is preparing to visit Britain to try to win over investors frustrated that the resource giant’s $15 billion spinoff company will not be listed in London.
Page 15: Australia’s biggest listed pharmacy group, Sigma Pharmaceuticals , is welcoming the prospect of a GP co-payment, saying it will be a shot in the arm for chemists.
AngloGold Ashanti may shelve its Australian sharemarket listing as it spins off its mining and exploration assets outside South Africa into a new London-based company.
Page 17: UBS’s top-ranked bank research team have almost doubled their estimates of the amount of capital Australia’s major banks may have to raise in response to David Murray’s financial system inquiry, from $23 billion to $41.1 billion.
Page 19: Roy Hill Holdings chief executive Barry Fitzgerald says the falling iron ore price isn’t of concern to Gina Rinehart’s $10 billion venture, but he has refused to reveal the break-even cost of the project.
Rail haulage giant Aurizon has won more time to come up with a viable infrastructure plan for the greenfield $7.4 billion West Pilbara Iron Ore Project, as the project’s owners insist the falling iron ore price will not kill off the project.
The Australian
Page 1: The Australian Bureau of Statistics has come under fire after reporting the biggest monthly jump in employment in the 35 years of official records, with market economists slamming the figures as “unbelievable.”
Page 2: Workers will suffer a mounting income-tax burden unless the federal government takes strong action to fix the tax system and possibly lift the GST, the nation’s top economic official has warned, in a dramatic alert on the need for reform.
Labor has sided with big business against a divisive plan to overhaul consumer-protection laws as the Abbott government hedges on the issue, ahead of a landmark competition review due within weeks.
Australia’s self-managed superannuation funds now control a massive $557 billion worth of assets, a rise of $62bn — or 12.5 per cent — in a year, according to the Tax Office.
Page 5: The number of kids in childcare grew by 8.5 per cent last year, but spending on government subsidies for childcare fees increased at more than twice that rate.
A controversial catch-and-kill shark program in Western Australia will be axed after the state’s Environmental Protection Authority recommended against the policy because of the likely threats posed to a vulnerable species.
Page 19: Australia’s richest woman, and developer of the $10 billion Roy Hill iron ore mine, Gina Rinehart, has urged the government to cut bureaucratic burdens as resources companies struggle with falling commodity prices.
Page 20: Origin Energy chief executive Grant King has embarked on a North American road show with the wind at his back, having seen the company’s share price rise more than any other top-50 Australian company in the past few weeks and with the promise of up to an extra $US1 billion ($1.09bn) a year to hand out to shareholders.
Page 21: Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has announced plans to force TPG Telecom to functionally separate part of the telco’s business that is building a fibre network to half a million apartment blocks in the nation’s capital cities.
News Corp chief executive Robert Thomson has said a renewed focus on the company’s Australian newspapers is delivering a turnaround in advertising revenue.
The West Australian
Page 3: Premier Colin Barnett has declared families, children, surfers and divers to be “unsafe” off South West beaches after shelving the Government’s shark drum-line policy for at least this summer and probably beyond.
Page 10: The Water Corporation has posted a record profit of more than $800 million just weeks after warning that budget cuts were pushing parts of its business to the brink.
Page 16: The ALP has backed Tony Abbott that the Federal Government cannot change how the GST is shared among the States and Territories without their unanimous support.
Page 24: There are doubts over the accuracy of the nation’s statistical agency after it reported the biggest one-month jump in jobs on record.
Page 26: The police union is demanding independent air quality tests at Karratha and South Hedland Police complexes amid fresh health concerns of alleged ongoing mould outbreaks.
Page 28: A WA firm has won a national science award for developing an emergency buoyancy system for helicopters if they crash into water.
Business: Glencore has moved to tap the Australian debt markets for the first time as speculation mounts the Swiss trading and mining giant will emerge as the buyer of BHP Billiton’s unwanted Nickel West division.
A State Agreement for the Anketell port and rail project could be signed before the end of the year, according to Premier Colin Barnett, with the WA Government keen to encourage China’s Baosteel to move quickly on the multibillion-dollar Pilbara development amid falling iron ore prices.
The Federal Government is planning to exempt Saudi Arabia from the most contentious aspects of animal welfare laws governing the export of sheep and cattle from Australia.
BC Iron’s friendly bid for Iron Ore Holdings is set to gather pace this week after a private company controlled by Kerry Stokes sold into the deal, effectively handing BCI control of its takeover target.