Morning Headlines

Economy rides Abbott victory

International investors are boosting their exposure to Australian shares on the back of the Coalition’s election win, with expectations of improved political stability, a recent fall in the dollar and signs of ongoing economic strength in China putting local stocks back on the radar. The Aus

Labor leadership battle

The Labor Party could be headed for a month-long leadership battle after former deputy Anthony Albanese told Bill Shorten he intends to run. The Fin

State grabs insurance profits

The state government decided last October to take $140 million of dividends out of the Insurance Commission of WA – and booked that revenue in the state's accounts – but never publicly spelled out that policy change until after the March state election. The West

Surging housing confidence fuels bubble concerns

Confidence among homebuyers has surged to its highest level in 12 years, adding to evidence the new Coalition government and the Reserve Bank of Australia face the risk of a property bubble on their watch. The Fin

Conoco warns of possible LNG oversupply

US oil major and Australian liquefied natural gas operator ConocoPhillips has warned new LNG plants here, in Europe, North America and Africa may outstrip demand, contrasting with recent bullish comments from the industry. The Aus

'Mature' reform talk urged

Congestion charges for motorists could be one of the items on the agenda for micro-economic reform in WA, according to the head of the state's economic regulator, amid warnings WA political leaders needed to foster a “mature discussion” of the reform agenda if the state was to make progress. The West

Emeco's bid secrecy backed by big investor

Emeco Holdings' largest shareholder, First Samuel, has thrown its support behind the heavy equipment rental group's decision not to disclose tentative takeover approaches from two private equity firms. The Fin

Perth buyers switch from houses to land

Property investors and first home buyers in Perth are shifting from houses to vacant lots. The Fin

WACA test gone

Perth will miss out on an annual Test match for the first time in almost 40 years after Cricket Australia voted last night to remove the WACA ground from its 2014-15 roster. The West

The West Australian

Page 1: Perth will miss out on an annual Test match for the first time in almost 40 years after Cricket Australia voted last night to remove the WACA ground from its 2014-15 roster.

Page 3: The state government decided last October to take $140 million of dividends out of the Insurance Commission of WA – and booked that revenue in the state's accounts – but never publicly spelled out that policy change until after the March state election.

Page 4: The Labor leadership tussle could become a de facto ballot on the future of the carbon tax after two MPs from the ALP right indicated the party should abandon the key policy.

The man who could represent Clive Palmer's party in the Senate for WA has given less than wholehearted support fr the Queensland businessman's more colourful conspiracy theories.

Page 5: Gina Rinehart has tried again to avoid next month's public bloodletting over her family's long-running feud with an eleventh-hour attempt to move the court battle behind closed doors.

Page 9: Colin Barnett has rejected opposition claims that more than 500 teaching jobs would disappear next year under schools funding changes while admitting that staff would be spread “more thinly” across increasing numbers of students.

Page 11: High-end fashion label Miu Miu's bid to open its first store in Perth has been held back by a heritage dispute over a timber staircase.

Business: Congestion charges for motorists could be one of the items on the agenda for micro-economic reform in WA, according to the head of the state's economic regulator, amid warnings WA political leaders needed to foster a “mature discussion” of the reform agenda if the state was to make progress.

VDM Group has cut more than 10 per cent of its workforce in the aftermath of being kicked off a BHP Billiton project site.

Wesfarmers' top executives have sold more than $3 million in stock to meet tax obligations.

Charter Hall Group, lined up by Westfield to buy the Innaloo shopping centre, yesterday insisted it remained keen to complete the deal despite the surprise about-face by Westfield Group and Westfield Retail Trust.

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: The Labor Party could be headed for a month-long leadership battle after former deputy Anthony Albanese told Bill Shorten he intends to run.

Corporate leaders have urged the incoming Coalition government to back Archer Daniels Midland's $3 billion takeover of GrainCorp, warning the deal is shaping up as a test of Australia's openness to foreign investment.

Confidence among homebuyers has surged to its highest level in 12 years, adding to evidence the new Coalition government and the Reserve Bank of Australia face the risk of a property bubble on their watch.

Page 3: Property investors and first home buyers in Perth are shifting from houses to vacant lots.

Page 4: A former Reserve Bank economist says Australia should avoid going down the path of New Zealand-style lending restrictions to address concerns about property price increases fuelled by low interest rates.

Page 8: Queensland billionaire Clive Palmer, whose party could hold the balance of power in the Senate from July next year, says he will renew his push to ban paid lobbyists from holding senior positions in political parties.

Page 10: The forthcoming decision by the new Coalition government on whether to give environmental approval to a fourth liquefied natural gas plant on Gladstone's Curtis Island is shaping up as an early test for Tony Abbott's yet-to-be-appointed senior team.

Page 11: Businesses are preparing for an end to popular tax breaks next year as Treasurer-elect Joe Hockey faces the difficult task of introducing as much as 100 pieces of outstanding tax legislation.

Page 13: Billionaire mining magnate Gina Rinehart is trying to abort a bitter court battle with her two eldest children over the $4 billion family trust by arguing the dispute must be sent to arbitration.

Australia's most expensive lawsuit, the Bell Group case, is poised to be settled by the litigants rather than a judge.

Page 14:The former boss of failed forestry business Great Southern, John Young, has strongly denies ousting an executive director from the company's board for raising concerns about the accuracy of its harvest claims, a court has heard.

Page 15: Qantas Airways has signed a $7.65 million tourism marketing agreement with Western Australia, taking to four the number of states and territories it has signed deals with.

Page 19: Consumer electronics chain Dick Smith could be back on the market before Christmas after its private equity owners appointed investment banks Goldman Sachs and Macquarie Capital to explore sale options, including an initial public offer valuing the chain between $550 million and $620 million.

Page 21: The board of Rio Tinto majority owned Oyu Tolgoi had appointed a new chief executive for the $US6.2 billion Mongolian-based copper mine but has yet to negotiate a financing agreement to fund the second stage of the mine.

Page 23: Emeco Holdings' largest shareholder, First Samuel, has thrown its support behind the heavy equipment rental group's decision not to disclose tentative takeover approaches from two private equity firms.

Page 24: Andrew Forrest's Fortescue Metals Group appears headed for arbitration with the iron ore juniors trying to gain access to the company's Pilbara rail network through the Economic Regulation Authority of Western Australia.

US energy major ConocoPhillips has given its most positive assessment for many years of the prospects for expanding its Darwin liquefied natural gas project, backed up by partner Santos.

The Australian

Page 1: International investors are boosting their exposure to Australian shares on the back of the Coalition’s election win, with expectations of improved political stability, a recent fall in the dollar and signs of ongoing economic strength in China putting local stocks back on the radar.

Former Labor front-bencher Stephen Conroy has warned the party will become a ‘‘laughing stock’’ if the ‘‘farcical’’ new rules introduced by Kevin Rudd prevent the parliamentary caucus from electing a new leader soon.

Tony Abbott has put regional and people-smuggling priorities ahead of global foreign policy, speaking to the leaders of Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Sri Lanka before Barack Obama.

Page 3: A hearing that would decide the outcome of Gina Rinehart’s dispute with two of her children for control of the $4 billion family trust could be delayed or aborted after the latest legal action by the nation’s wealthiest person.

Page 6: Labor's national secretary, George Wright, has shrugged off criticism of Labor’s election campaign and wants to continue to lead the party’s organisational wing and run the party’s next election campaign.

Page 8: The Nationals politician most likely to be agriculture minister, Barnaby Joyce, has flagged the $3 billion foreign bid for Australia’s biggest agribusiness as the first test for the incoming government, with the Coalition partners split on the takeover.

The Abbott government is being urged to fast-track approvals for billions of dollars worth of major resource developments to head off a looming jobs crunch as projects now under construction move to production.

Business: The giant state-owned China Investment Corporation could emerge with almost half of the nation’s oldest dairy producer under a proposed $200 million deal that will test the commitment of the new government to foreign investment.

Telstra has redrafted its former regulatory pugilist and lead National Broadband Network negotiator Tony Warren to head the telco’s renegotiations of its $11 billion NBN deal with the new Coalition government.

The nation's biggest mortgage broker says competition in the $1.3 trillion home loan market is far from peaking, signalling growing pressure on bank margins after the industry regulator warned that lending standards must not be compromised.

US oil major and Australian liquefied natural gas operator ConocoPhillips has warned new LNG plants here, in Europe, North America and Africa may outstrip demand, contrasting with recent bullish comments from the industry.

Woodside Petroleum should pipe its Browse Basin gas almost 1000km to Darwin rather than build a floating LNG project off the West Australian coast, according to Northern Territory Chief Minister Adam Giles.

Fortescue Metals Group has no choice but to start negotiations aimed at granting iron ore hopeful Brockman Resources access to the miner’s vast Pilbara rail network, the head of Western Australia’s Economic Regulation Authority has warned.

Movie streaming and DVD rental company Quickflix has exited a nine-day trading halt to kick off a $5.5 million capital raising that the company will use to pay down debt and expand its customer base.