Senate push for iron ore inquiry
Independent Senator Nick Xenophon will call for an urgent inquiry into Australia’s $57 billion iron ore industry, which could trigger tougher rules governing Australia’s biggest miners, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto. The Fin
FIFO workers lose access to remote residents’ tax break
Fly-in, fly-out workers who live in Perth and the South West and claim a tax benefit for working in remote parts of the State will no longer be able to do so, costing them between $57 and $1173 a year. The West
WA set to receive rock bottom return on GST
WA’s GST take will plummet to historic depths this year with the State to retain just $1.9 billion of the $6.4 billion paid by WA taxpayers. The West
Ailing Orica chasing Pilbara work
Explosives suppliers are set for a fierce fight to supply iron ore miners in the Pilbara following the collapse in key commodity prices, according to interim Orica boss Alberto Calderon. The Aus
Value-for-money inquiry push
The State Opposition says it will call for a parliamentary inquiry into WA’s iron ore industry, focusing on whether the State is getting the best royalty returns from the big Pilbara producers. The West
Low-cost iron ore supply set to continue
Treasurer Joe Hockey might have sympathy for mining billionaire Andrew Forrest’s beef that BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto are flooding the global iron ore market but Treasury expects the iron ore glut to continue for years. The Fin
Hockey spends up as deficits hung out to dry
The federal government has splashed out more than $10 billion on families and small business and put another $1 billion up its sleeve in hidden measures in a federal budget that aims to stimulate the economy, lift the Coalition’s standing in the polls and give it the option of an early election. The Fin
The Australian Financial Review
Budget: The federal government has splashed out more than $10 billion on families and small business and put another $1 billion up its sleeve in hidden measures in a federal budget that aims to stimulate the economy, lift the Coalition’s standing in the polls and give it the option of an early election.
Small businesses will get tax cuts and are being encouraged to splurge on new assets under a $5.5 billion package designed to help entrepreneurial Australians to ‘‘have a go’’.
Consultancy and professional services purchased from offshore will be caught in a considerably wider GST net from mid-2017, the government has confirmed.
Backpackers, foreign investors and Australians living overseas as well as fly-in, fly-out workers and employees of non-profits have been targeted for nearly $2 billion in collective savings in Joe Hockey’s second budget.
Treasurer Joe Hockey might have sympathy for mining billionaire Andrew Forrest’s beef that BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto are flooding the global iron ore market but Treasury expects the iron ore glut to continue for years.
Page 1: Independent Senator Nick Xenophon will call for an urgent inquiry into Australia’s $57 billion iron ore industry, which could trigger tougher rules governing Australia’s biggest miners, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto.
Qantas Airways has flagged a resumption of dividends in the coming year after chief executive Alan Joyce emphasised the airline is benefiting from its cost-cutting program, low fuel prices and what he terms the world’s ‘‘most disciplined capacity market’’ despite the Australian economy’s ‘‘patchy performance’’.
Page 3: Reserve Bank of Australia analysts raised concerns about the danger of ignoring surging home prices late last year and were worried about introducing untested policies, RBA documents disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act show.
Page 8: A former Transport Worker’s Union boss in Western Australia has told a royal commission into union corruption he was ‘‘humbled’’ to have been given a luxury car by the union’s branch in addition to a generous redundancy package.
Page 15: Investors have given the thumbs up to National Australia Bank’s record $5.5 billion rights issue, with the stock closing on Tuesday at $34.54, more than 2 per cent above the theoretical ex-rights price of $33.79.
Coca-Cola Amatil chief executive Alison Watkins is intent on steadying earnings this year even though increasing price competition in supermarkets has made it harder to lift soft drink and bottled water prices.
Page 17: Rio Tinto has indefinitely shelved its planned $1 billion new mine in the Pilbara and ruled out committing new capital for its controversial iron ore expansion, as rival BHP Billiton slashed its capital expenditure guidance for the second time in three months, by another $US1.8 billion ($2.2 billion).
Explosives suppliers are set for a fierce fight to supply iron ore miners in the Pilbara following the collapse in key commodity prices, according to interim Orica boss Alberto Calderon.
Page 21: Independence Group is running the ruler over Mark Creasy’s Sirius Resources in what could prove a precursor to a $3 billion merger.
Radical changes in the way the North West Shelf partners market their liquefied natural gas are seen as a potential trigger for a showdown with China over the economic superpower’s ultra-cheap gas purchase contract.
Page 24: A tour of Perth-based, government-funded organisations and ASX-listed and unlisted entities last week that focus on the IT and telecommunications space highlighted the state’s progress in broadening its exposure to new industries outside the resources sector.
The Australian
Page 1: The Abbott government has sacrificed its most ambitious savings in a bid to win back Liberal voters with a softer budget that trims the deficit but delays fiscal repair until after the next election.
Page 3: Young people will wait only one month for the dole instead of six after the Coalition walked away from one of the most contentious policies announced in last year’s budget.
Page 8: A new benchmark will decide whether retirees can qualify for the Age Pension as the government claims a $2.4 billion saving from tighter rules on the asset test that determines the payments.
Page 15: The Coalition and Labor are under intense pressure to end the stalemate over the renewable energy target, with business and industry calling for a deal within days and for “common sense” to prevail.
Page 18: Public servants are able to make compensation claims on the government scheme that would “not stand up to public scrutiny” — and the cost of defending “spurious” claims is rising.
State governments, local councils and mining giants are failing to properly plan housing for workers on resources projects, a parliamentary committee has heard.
Page 32: University groups have taken aim at the patchwork of research funding cuts unveiled in the federal budget last night, with Universities Australia chief Belinda Robinson calling cuts to the Sustainable Research Excellence funding a “real blow for universities”.
Page 39: The Abbott government is banking on a surge in non-mining business investment underpinned by strong corporate balance sheets, low interest rates, the lower dollar and cheaper fuel prices to drive wealth creation across the economy after an abrupt end to the mining boom.
Page 40: The nation’s top telecommunications companies have called for clarity on how the government will allocate the $131 million of funding it has set aside in the budget to help set up its controversial data retention scheme.
The West Australian
Budget: Fly-in, fly-out workers who live in Perth and the South West and claim a tax benefit for working in remote parts of the State will no longer be able to do so, costing them between $57 and $1173 a year.
Australian shoppers will have to quicken their spending pace to lift the national economy with warnings growth will slow and unemployment remain elevated over the coming year.
WA’s GST take will plummet to historic depths this year with the State to retain just $1.9 billion of the $6.4 billion paid by WA taxpayers.
Page 4: An urban planning expert has branded Perth the lowest density major city he has seen, as the State’s land development agency boss warned developers might have only one chance to get high density right.
Thousands of northern suburbs motorists will get phone calls urging them to take public transport in a bid to ease Perth’s congestion woes.
Page 14: WA farmers do not know whether they will be dancing in the rain or kicking up dust to start winter as they weigh up conflicting information from leading forecasters.
Business: The State Opposition says it will call for a parliamentary inquiry into WA’s iron ore industry, focusing on whether the State is getting the best royalty returns from the big Pilbara producers.
The milk produced by WA’s biggest dairy farming operation is up for grabs after Brownes withdrew from the race to retain its major supplier.
The Royal Flying Doctor Service in WA is poised to test the waters of corporate philanthropy in straitened economic times with the launch this week of a $50 million fundraising campaign.
