Medibank ‘hid’ charges to boost IPO
Thousands of documents, including minutes of meetings, emails and interviews with Medibank Private executives, reveal a deliberate strategy to cover up a decision to secretly slash coverage over common hospital tests for its 3.9 million customers, the competition watchdog alleges. The Fin
Korean steel giant Posco eyes Arrium
South Korea’s largest steelmaker Posco and a string of US and British private equity funds are being increasingly attracted as potential buyers of collapsed Arrium and the Whyalla steelworks as extra taxpayer funds are loaded into the sale process. The Fin
Crown spin-off creates $2b property trust
Plans by Crown Resorts to spin-off five hotels into a new trust could create a listed vehicle holding about $2 billion worth of property and offer investors exposure to the strongly performing luxury hotel market. The Fin
Traders’ biggest night since Black Wednesday
The world’s biggest banks, including Citi and Goldman Sachs, will draft in senior traders to work through the night following Britain’s referendum on EU membership, set to be among the most volatile 24 hours for markets in a quarter of a century. The Fin
LNG price pain is still to come
One of the world’s energy experts has suggested that some of Australia’s liquefied natural gas producers may have to mothball capacity as the Asian market becomes awash with supply and spot prices collapse further. The Fin
Miner gets $86m insurance payout
Mount Gibson Iron chief executive Jim Beyer has dismissed suggestions the 2014 collapse of the seawall at the Koolan Island iron ore mine was a blessing in disguise for the miner, considering the price volatility for the commodity in the ensuing period. The Fin
China binges on infrastructure as West falls behind
The world needs to dramatically ramp up spending on infrastructure to keep up with economic growth, according to a report from the McKinsey Global Institute. But many major economies are going in the other direction. The Aus
Delay costs WA families
The cost to WA families of delaying the Federal Government’s childcare package by 12 months is more than $102 million, analysis shows. The West
Gold cheer for Brexit
Polls show Britons will vote next week to exit the European Union and it has gold traders betting the precious metal will soon be even more valuable. The West
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Thousands of documents, including minutes of meetings, emails and interviews with Medibank Private executives, reveal a deliberate strategy to cover up a decision to secretly slash coverage over common hospital tests for its 3.9 million customers, the competition watchdog alleges.
Robert Zoellick, a former World Bank president, has a warning for Australia about its economic and diplomatic relationship with China: don’t bet the farm.
The value of gaming tycoon James Packer’s stake in Crown Resorts could increase by up to $1.6 billion if investors back a break-up of the company.
Page 3: Maurice Blackburn has been left $11 million out of pocket after abandoning its class action against the federal government over the 2007 horse flu outbreak that brought the racing industry to its knees.
Page 5: Major Projects Minister Paul Fletcher has blamed trade unions for a large blowout in the costs of big infrastructure projects in Australia, saying it could add up to 30 per cent to the total cost of a project.
Page 6: Australia’s poorest households enjoyed the biggest gains in wealth over recent years, according to Reserve Bank of Australia research that challenges widespread claims inequality is getting worse.
Page 7: Economist Warren Hogan said a hung Parliament would be a terrible outcome from the July 2 election because it would unsettle the markets and make it more difficult to attract investment.
Page 9: South Korea’s largest steelmaker Posco and a string of US and British private equity funds are being increasingly attracted as potential buyers of collapsed Arrium and the Whyalla steelworks as extra taxpayer funds are loaded into the sale process.
Page 11: The Reserve Bank of Australia has escalated warnings about China’s debt and questioned the country’s reliance on interest rate stimulus over structural reform.
Page 13: The world’s biggest banks, including Citi and Goldman Sachs, will draft in senior traders to work through the night following Britain’s referendum on EU membership, set to be among the most volatile 24 hours for markets in a quarter of a century.
Page 15: A decision by the US Federal Reserve not to raise interest rates this month helped push the yield on Australian 10-year government bonds below 2 per cent for the first time, although they remain much higher than in Germany, Japan and some other countries.
Page 17: One of the world’s energy experts has suggested that some of Australia’s liquefied natural gas producers may have to mothball capacity as the Asian market becomes awash with supply and spot prices collapse further.
Page 18: Mount Gibson Iron chief executive Jim Beyer has dismissed suggestions the 2014 collapse of the seawall at the Koolan Island iron ore mine was a blessing in disguise for the miner, considering the price volatility for the commodity in the ensuing period.
Page 20: Plans by Crown Resorts to spin-off five hotels into a new trust could create a listed vehicle holding about $2 billion worth of property and offer investors exposure to the strongly performing luxury hotel market.
Page 28: Fund managers around the globe are hoarding cash and short-selling the British pound as the Brexit decision comes down to the wire, Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s fund manager survey found.
Page 31: So far technology has only claimed the jobs of junior lawyers, but consultants now warn that law firms have little more than five years before artificial intelligence starts hitting the work of senior lawyers and partners.
The Australian
Page 1: Government plans to allow imports of overseas vehicles are likely to be dumped, amid a backlash from Coalition MPs concerned about the impact on small business and regional communities.
Page 4: Bill Shorten’s old union signed off on a sweetheart deal with supermarket giant Coles that enshrined illegal underpayments for 30,000 casual workers before it was struck down by the industrial relations umpire.
Page 6: Superannuation is playing a pivotal role in household wealth generation, including for middle-income earners, and is helping to offset the cost of age pensions, a Reserve Bank study shows.
Page 8: More than $1.5 billion of aged-care savings banked by both the Coalition and Labor are likely to be stalled in the Senate because the Greens and Nick Xenophon’s party oppose the measures while they remain independent of “serious reform”.
Page 19: With little in the way of assets and notching up heavy losses, Australian music streaming service Guvera will push ahead with a sharemarket listing next month with a market capitalisation of up to $1.45 billion.
Page 21: A restart date for the BHP Billiton and Vale owned Samarco iron ore operation in Brazil has been delayed until next year, putting increased pressure on Samarco’s ability to continue to solely fund the massive clean-up from last November’s devastating tailings dam failure.
Page 23: Australian lenders are seeing a strong windfall from credit card fees, which have contributed to a 3.5 per cent increase in banks’ income from fees last year to $12.5 billion, according to the Reserve Bank’s annual report on bank fees.
Page 25: The world needs to dramatically ramp up spending on infrastructure to keep up with economic growth, according to a report from the McKinsey Global Institute. But many major economies are going in the other direction.
Page 26: Industrial property giant Goodman Group plans $10 billion of development across its global platform, substantially ramping up its focus on North America, after building up strong capital reserves from recent asset sales.
Page 28: Virgin Australia’s ambitious plan to slash costs by reducing jobs and rationalising its aircraft numbers will put the cash-strapped airline on the path to improved profits, according to analysts.
The West Australian
Page 4: Judges are in line for a pay rise 20 per cent more generous than public servants can expect after the Salaries and Allowances Tribunal thumbed its nose at the State Government’s austere wages policy.
Page 12: Helicopters carrying critically injured passengers may not be able to land at Royal Perth Hospital within two years, with Treasury so far refusing to fund upgrades to its helipad.
Page 13: The Health Department has rejected claims that lives will be at risk because of a decision to slash the State’s acute response team for mentally ill children.
Page 19: The cost to WA families of delaying the Federal Government’s childcare package by 12 months is more than $102 million, analysis shows.
Page 28: The children of a railway worker killed by a train at Guildford are suing the Public Transport Authority over his death.
Page 32: Residents of Port Hedland, WA’s biggest port, are being exposed to dust levels higher than the national limit for almost a quarter of the year, according to Pilbara MP Brendon Grylls.
Page 81: Polls show Britons will vote next week to exit the European Union and it has gold traders betting the precious metal will soon be even more valuable.
Page 82: Liberal Senator Anne Ruston has given the WA wine industry hope it could avoid big job losses and rationalisation as a result of changes to tax rules.
Page 83: Australian-listed graphite players have rushed to take advantage of hot money flowing into the space, with market leader Syrah Resources tapping investors for $194 million and a slew of smaller companies also raising cash.