Rudd vows to cut GST red tape
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will make a bold pitch for the small business vote by promising to cut their GST returns from quarterly to once a year. The Fin
PNG fears over asylum flood
Kevin Rudd’s plan t o house thousands of asylum- seekers in tents on Manus Island would be beyond the capacity of Papua New Guinea to deliver, with its most senior immigration official pleading ‘‘God help us’’ when he was briefed on the plan. The Aus
Ex-staffer puts acid on Collier
The former staffer at the centre of the political storm engulfing senior state Liberal Perter Collier went public yesterday with allegations the minister threatened to harm the reputation of a public servant who complained of bullying. The West
Forrest big winner from FMG
Fortescue Metals Group has beaten profit expectations and delivered a dividend windfall to billionaire chairman Andrew Forrest, but appears to have all but given up on a debt-busting sale of a minority stake in its infrastructure business. The Fin
Gold Fields upbeat on WA mines
Gold Fields chief executive Nick Holland says the company is confident it can translate its success in turning around its WA operations to the three Barrick Gold mines it has agreed to buy, saying the $US300 million deal was attractive. The West
Investors tune in to Seven despite loss of $70m
Seven West Media cheered investors with the performance of its core television asset given the challenging backdrop in 2013, despite posting a statutory net loss of $ 70 million f ollowing a $ 221m write-down on its magazine business. The Aus
Atlas invites bidders for stake in Horizon 2
Atlas Iron has opened talks to sell minority stakes in its next generation of mines, at the same time as Fortescue Metals Group again appeared to back away from selling part of its infrastructure arm. The West
Spotlight on CBA's Bankwest buy
A multi-million-dollar case against Bankwest brought by a former Neighbours actor could shed further light on issues surrounding Commonwealth Bank’s $2.1 billion acquisition of the distressed lender. The Aus
The West Australian
Page 1: Essendon was isolated in its war with the AFL when presidents of the other 17 clubs expressed support for the league after a meeting in Melbourne yesterday.
Page 3: Principals have warned that savage cuts to public school funding allocations revealed yesterday will reduce the quality of education offered by WA schools.
Page 6: The Coalition will need at least $30 billion in cuts just to stop the budget going further into the red, one of the nation;s most respected economists found.
Page 11: The City of Melville will try to develop or sell properties from its $180 million land portfolio to raise money.
Page 13: The former staffer at the centre of the political storm engulfing senior state Liberal Perter Collier went public yesterday with allegations the minister threatened to harm the reputation of a public servant who complained of bullying.
Page 14: Home unit owners whose city views would be blocked by James Packer's proposed six-star hotel at Burswood had a legal victory over the Barnett government that gives them access t documents previously kept secret.
Page 16: The operation of the state's premier stage venues could be overhauled after Perth Theatre Trust chairman Peter Blaxell said he was embarrassed about the subsidies needed to run them.
Business: Gold Fields chief executive Nick Holland says the company is confident it can translate its success in turning around its WA operations to the three Barrick Gold mines it has agreed to buy, saying the $US300 million deal was attractive.
Two of the state's biggest resources contractors, NRW and Decmil, have halved their workforces in the past year in a stark reminder of the mining downturn's impact.
Atlas Iron has opened talks to sell minority stakes in its next generation of mines, at the same time as Fortescue Metals Group again appeared to back away from selling part of its infrastructure arm.
Election spending and renewed interest from major advertisers has the Seven television network tracking towards its best quarter in several years.
Gorgon continues to bear fruit for Mermaid Marine Australia, with the vessel operator winning more than $100 million in work supporting construction of the massive North West LNG project.
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will make a bold pitch for the small business vote by promising to cut their GST returns from quarterly to once a year.
The Nationals will be stripped of the trade portfolio in government for the first time in almost 60 years because they are deemed too protectionist to spearhead an aggressive free trade and foreign investment agenda planned by Liberal leader Tony Abbott.
Page 3: Employer groups have criticised the Fair Work Commission for pay rises of $70 to $100 a week for many first and second-year apprentices and substantial increases for adults who take up apprenticeships.
Page 5: The Coalition has failed to say whether it will go ahead with more than $8 billion of infrastructure projects, including vital freight links, raising questions about whether it plans a major shift in infrastructure priorities or whether it may use the funds to fill a growing hole in the cost of election commitments.
Page 7: The Coalition will give small business unprecedented protection in negotiations with larger companies and the ability to challenge unfair contracts.
Page 11: Kevin Rudd has invoked the class warfare he vowed to avoid as he attacked the Coalition's paid parental leave scheme as profiting billionaires such as Clive Palmer and Gina Rinehart while plundering the income of self-funded retirees.
Page 12: Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has said businesses are struggling with cost pressures and appeared to hint a Coalition government would support a business push to reduce penalty rates through the Fair Work Commission.
Page 15: Fortescue Metals Group has beaten profit expectations and delivered a dividend windfall to billionaire chairman Andrew Forrest, but appears to have all but given up on a debt-busting sale of a minority stake in its infrastructure business.
Page 18: Seven West Media's new chief executive Tim Worner is planning a management restructure as he seeks to reposition the television and print business for greater digital growth.
Page 19: Pilbara iron ore junior Atlas Iron is confident of locking in equity partners for undeveloped projects this financial year as it looks to keep its expansion plans on track and recover from a hefty annual loss.
Alumina chief executive John Bevan said the outlook for alumina remains “challenging” but hopes more sales of its product based on the spot price, and further productivity improvements, will boost earnings.
The Australian
Page 1: Kevin Rudd’s plan to house thousands of asylum-seekers in tents on Manus Island would be beyond the capacity of Papua New Guinea to deliver, with its most senior immigration official pleading ‘‘God help us’’ when he was briefed on the plan.
Ford has blamed Kevin Rudd’s $ 1.8 billion fringe benefits tax overhaul for halting production, forcing at least 750 workers to be stood down in rolling stoppages that will further imperil Labor’s chances of retaining the nation’s most marginal seat.
Page 5: Tony Abbott is refusing to put a timeline on the Coalition’s pledge to reinstate at least $3 billion slashed from the private health insurance rebate, despite declaring conservative support for the subsidy to be “in the marrow of our bones’’.
Page 6: Tony Abbott faces attack from both sides of industry over his paid parental leave plan, with employers warning that it will lead to companies abandoning and modifying their own schemes and unions declaring it is discriminatory against public servants.
Experts are countering one of Tony Abbott’s central claims for his $5.5 billion parental leave plan, warning it will not deliver the economic payoff the Opposition Leader promises.
Page 7: Employers have warned the apprenticeship system faces destruction after the Fair Work Commission awarded significant pay rises of between $ 70 and $ 100 a week to apprentices.
Builders have attacked a key element of the Coalition’s workplace relations policy, warning that its proposal to fix delays on new construction projects was unlikely to work.
Business: Origin Energy chief Grant King has shrugged off weak power market conditions to focus investors on the road ahead, declaring cash-flow and earnings are set to double after the Australia Pacific LNG plant at Gladstone in Queensland starts producing.
Seven West Media cheered investors with the performance of its core television asset given the challenging backdrop in 2013, despite posting a statutory net loss of $ 70 million f ollowing a $ 221m write-down on its magazine business.
The rejuvenated self- belief of iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group will see Andrew Forrest collect a $102 million dividend payment in the coming weeks, with strong iron ore prices and a bullish view on China helping the company shrug off the past year’s balance- sheet worries.
Atlas Iron has been punished by investors after its annual results came in below market expectations, leading to analyst downgrades on the stock and questions around the timing for its rail solution.
Mining contractor NRW Holdings has revealed it shed more than 2300 employees over the past year as contract terminations and a slowdown in the resources sector took their toll.
A multi-million-dollar case against Bankwest brought by a former Neighbours actor could shed further light on issues surrounding Commonwealth Bank’s $2.1 billion acquisition of the distressed lender.
Toll Holdings has a gloomy economic outlook for the year ahead and will focus on cost cutting in its problem businesses and growing revenues from new market opportunities to drive earnings.
Fairfax Media’s second- largest shareholder has expressed concern that the company’s revenues are in free fall after the publisher posted a net loss of $16.4 million for the full year.