Palmer mine bid rejected
Clive Palmer’s private mining vehicle, Mineralogy, has again inflamed tensions with Aboriginal people in the Pilbara after it failed to seek permission from native title claimants before entering their land to seek new mining tenements. The Aus
Iron ore, oil, gold prospects depress
WA is heading for a cheerless festive season amid increasingly gloomy forecasts for the State’s three most important commodities. The West
Mild winter just perfect for harvest’s flying start
Harvest is off to a record-breaking start in WA with almost 2.5 million tonnes of grain delivered to receival sites by late yesterday. The West
First-home buyers change habits
First-home buyers are purchasing fewer established homes and building more of their own, in a change in buying habits that is increasing supply in Perth and suppressing house prices. The Fin
Apartments plan for historic pub
The owners of the fire-ravaged Guildford Hotel have revealed plans to build high-density housing at the rear of the site, saying it will make the costly restoration of the historic building viable. The West
Pluton submits to receivership
The sole Australian-based director of Pluton Resources’ estranged joint venture partner, Wise Energy, has denied that the Hong Kong-based company was involved in receivers being called in to the embattled iron ore miner. The Fin
Iron ore shipments hit record
Iron ore shipments out of Port Hedland have swollen to another monthly record, underscoring the continued supply surge that has driven down prices this year. The Aus
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: The Financial System Inquiry is considering recommending industry superannuation funds are overseen by a majority of independent directors, a move designed to wrest control of the $380 billion sector from unions.
Page 3: Many Australian taxpayers worth more than $30 million will this month get letters from the Australian Taxation Office seeking information about tax structures.
Page 4: Tony Abbott has told the Commonwealth public sector it must exercise restraint and accept real wage cuts for the foreseeable future in a call that the business community says should also be heeded by the private sector.
Coles’s online delivery drivers will still be paid retail rates after the Transport Workers Union lost a Federal Court appeal for them to be covered under the more generous transport award.
Page 7: Prime Minister Tony Abbott is looking at holding an informal meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at next week’s economic summit in China in a bid to defuse some of the tension between the pair and prevent their personal feud dominating the Group of 20 leaders’ meeting in Brisbane.
Page 13: The federal government’s ability to pass legislation to increase pharmaceutical co-payments before their start date on January 1 is in doubt, with crossbench support lacking and few signs of negotiation.
First-home buyers are purchasing fewer established homes and building more of their own, in a change in buying habits that is increasing supply in Perth and suppressing house prices.
Page 17: The artificial boost to bank profits from falling bad debts has almost run its course, with bank analysts tipping rising unemployment and interest rates will crimp further bad debt reductions.
Page 19: Woolworths may have to sacrifice margins in food and liquor to revive sales and regain lost market share after reporting its weakest sales and volume growth in more than a decade.
Page 21: Transfield Services’ biggest institutional investor, Allan Gray, has backed the company’s decision to reject a $1 billion indicative takeover bid from Spanish infrastructure group Ferrovial, arguing the Australian group is worth more than $2 a share.
Page 22: The sole Australian-based director of Pluton Resources’ estranged joint venture partner, Wise Energy, has denied that the Hong Kong-based company was involved in receivers being called in to the embattled iron ore miner.
Page 23: Cane farmer lobby Canegrowers wants the government to grant the competition regulator greater powers to address “market failure” in the sugar industry, a move miller Wilmar Sugar warns would deter foreign investment.
Page 26: The strength of two of Australia’s fast food empires was demonstrated recently when Domino’s Pizza Enterprises announced strong trading figures and upgraded 2014-15 guidance, while Retail Food Group’s endless appetite for acquisitions resulted in its largest purchase to date.
The Australian
Page 1: Savings on health and education have been locked into Tony Abbott’s personal commitments at next week’s G20 summit, as the Prime Minister stands by the unpopular reforms and warns of similar hard decisions in next year’s federal budget.
James Packer’s falling out with the Napthine government has been blamed on a breakdown in communications within his company, Crown, over a planned new tax regime that caught the gambling mogul by surprise.
Page 2: Retail sales have recorded their highest monthly rise in five years, driven by resurgent discretionary spending and a rush on new iPhones.
Page 3: There is little evidence of any benefit from Labor childcare reforms that reduce staff-child ratios but lead to an increase in costs and red tape.
Page 4: Half the nation’s employees expect to stay in their current jobs for less than five years and young adult workers are most likely to change employment.
Page 5: Clive Palmer’s private mining vehicle, Mineralogy, has again inflamed tensions with Aboriginal people in the Pilbara after it failed to seek permission from native title claimants before entering their land to seek new mining tenements.
Page 21: The major banks will pay at least $400 million a year to comply with strict new liquidity rules, after the regulator nailed down a key plank of the Basel III reforms as a storm gathered about the cost of potentially further tightening capital rules.
Page 23: The founder and chief executive of education group Navitas, Rod Jones, has warned that the woes at rival player Vocation will cause reputational damage to other companies in the sector.
BHP Billiton will cut 150 workers from its NSW Hunter Valley coal mine, adding to the more than 2500 people to have lost their jobs from that region in the past two years.
Iron ore shipments out of Port Hedland have swollen to another monthly record, underscoring the continued supply surge that has driven down prices this year.
Page 26: Westpac, the nation’s second-largest home loan lender, has assured shareholders its mortgage growth revival can roll on and withstand rampant competition without sacrificing margins.
The West Australian
Page 3: WA public schools are hiring interstate debt collectors to recoup money from parents struggling to pay elective course fees.
Page 11: Interest rates are going to remain on hold well into next year after the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed it now believes employers are shedding workers rather than putting them on.
Page 13: There has been another mystery membership surge in former State minister Rob Johnson’s seat, prompting calls for the Liberal Party’s powerful State Executive to investigate.
Margaret River’s Deep Woods Reserve chardonnay 2013 has been judged the best wine of nearly 500 submitted in The West Australian’s annual Top 100 white wine tasting.
Page 14: The owners of the fire-ravaged Guildford Hotel have revealed plans to build high-density housing at the rear of the site, saying it will make the costly restoration of the historic building viable.
Thousands of Federal public servants appear certain to take industrial action after the Abbott Government said it would not agree to wage demands.
Business: WA is heading for a cheerless festive season amid increasingly gloomy forecasts for the State’s three most important commodities.
Harvest is off to a record-breaking start in WA with almost 2.5 million tonnes of grain delivered to receival sites by late yesterday.
Production at Glencore’s Murrin Murrin nickel operation fell off in the September quarter, with the company’s last remaining Australian nickel mine missing some of the financial boost from the uplift in nickel prices.
Oil and gas vessel operator Bhagwan Marine more than doubled its profit in the past financial year as its footprint extended across northern Australia.
The Royal Flying Doctor Service is preparing to set up a fund to better harness corporate support for its WA operations.
