Extra tax perks to boost R&D
Bigger businesses will be eligible for millions in extra tax incentives under a plan that would extend the government’s innovation agenda well beyond start-ups. The Fin
Morrison says lower backpacker tax is competitive
Modelling confirms the revamped backpacker tax puts Australia on a competitive footing with New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Canada, Treasurer Scott Morrison said on Wednesday as he launched a spirited defence of the new measures amid complaints from tourism that it was subsidising agriculture. The Fin
AiGroup says tax cut for small business is better than nothing
Australian Industry Group chief executive Innes Willox says a tax cut for smaller business will be better than nothing if it proves too hard for the government to pursue relief for multinationals. The Fin
Ditching coal ‘will cause power chaos’
AGL Energy has warned that “blind Freddy” could see that a disorderly, hasty transition away from conventional coal-fired electricity will trigger “chaos”. The Aus
Gorgon on track after teething problems: Chevron
The head of global energy giant Chevron says the company’s massive Gorgon liquefied natural gas plant is shaking off its early teething problems, with the $55 billion project’s first train closing in on its targeted capacity. The Aus
$500m precinct proposed at Perth’s Elizabeth Quay
Perth’s Elizabeth Quay precinct has taken another step forward after WA developer Fini Group and offshore-backed AAIG released designs for a $500 million hotel, residential and office precinct. The Aus
Colliers in liability stoush with subbies
The WA arm of real estate giant Colliers International is disputing any liability under a guarantee it signed promising to “pay all moneys due and payable” by building company CPD Group to subcontractors on an apartment complex in Rockingham. The West
Abalone expansion on menu
An Augusta-based company using a revolutionary artificial reef system to grow abalone wants to expand operations to Bremer Bay, Esperance and Port Lincoln in South Australia. The West
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Bigger businesses will be eligible for millions in extra tax incentives under a plan that would extend the government’s innovation agenda well beyond start-ups.
Large bricks-and-mortar retailers aiming to boost their e-commerce credentials by acquiring online rivals have been warned to expect scrutiny from the competition regulator.
Former federal education minister and Vocation chairman John Dawkins will face court after the corporate regulator accused him of failing to disclose the training provider was at risk of losing crucial government funding.
Page 4: Australia has five years to make its budget more resilient to a potential economic shock from booming debt levels in China, Treasurer Scott Morrison says.
Australian Industry Group chief executive Innes Willox says a tax cut for smaller business will be better than nothing if it proves too hard for the government to pursue relief for multinationals.
Page 5: Hefty penalties have been built into new superannuation laws which for the first time limit all pension-phase accounts to $1.6 million, financial advisers say.
Page 7: Carnegie Wave Energy will build the world’s first renewable energy micro-grid using wave energy on an island off Western Australia, which chief Michael Ottaviano says will put Australia ‘‘streaks ahead’’ of global rivals.
Page 8: Bank chiefs appearing before a parliamentary inquiry will be asked about the prospect of portable bank accounts, which would drive competition by making it easier to switch institutions.
Modelling confirms the revamped backpacker tax puts Australia on a competitive footing with New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Canada, Treasurer Scott Morrison said on Wednesday as he launched a spirited defence of the new measures amid complaints from tourism that it was subsidising agriculture.
Page 10: JB Hi-Fi chief executive Richard Murray says retailers need to take a disciplined approach to investment as consumer shopping habits change and the lines between online and offline retailing become increasingly blurred.
Page 13: The founder of the Bakers Delight chain, Roger Gillespie, has questioned whether shopping centre owners’ calls for certainty in planning laws are really an attempt to crush competition.
The chief executive of The Good Guys retail chain says there has been little impact on trading in the past few weeks from the fire sale of the failed Masters hardware chain because much of it was older stock that was unappealing to many customers.
Page 16: Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf has agreed to give up $US41 million ($53 million) in unvested stock awards following the board of directors’ investigation into the bank’s sales practices, the company said on Wednesday.
Saudi Arabia gave the strongest indication yet it’s ready to compromise with regional rival Iran, potentially paving the way for the first limit on oil production in two years, although a deal is unlikely until OPEC’s next meeting in November.
Page 19: AGL has promised to review pay packets for senior management, including chief executive Andy Vesey, after the energy utility was hit with a ‘‘first strike’’ against its remuneration report.
Australian hedge fund Morphic Asset claims Platinum Asset Management, the fund manager whose shares it has shorted, will have little or no residual value once billionaire founder Kerr Neilson retires.
Page 21: Aurizon’s incoming chief executive Andrew Harding has his work cut out when he starts in December as fresh calls emerge to sell off stakes in the rail group’s networks business and diversify into ports and road transport.
Foxtel will embrace rivals such as Netflix and Stan by taking the streaming services onto its own platform. The pay television giant’s chief executive, Peter Tonagh, said Foxtel was responding to customers by allowing third-party applications from rival services onto its next set-top box.
Page 22: Slater and Gordon is considering a class action lawsuit against UGL over allegations it breached its continuous disclosure obligations in late 2014 by delaying informing investors about cost blowouts on a power plant contract for INPEX’s Ichthys gas project.
Page 23: A merger of Evans & Partners and Dixon Advisory aims to create a wealth advisory firm with more than $20 billion under management, providing another sign that industry consolidation is alive and well.
The Australian
Page 2: Health Minister Sussan Ley is under pressure to intervene in a $1 billion cost-shifting dispute involving public hospitals admitting patients, often through emergency departments, and having them bill their insurer for treatment.
Page 4: As much as 90 per cent of government subsidies for research and development pays for work that would have happened anyway, a high-powered review of the $3 billion scheme has found.
Page 5: Sydney businessman Vanda Gould faces the threat of up to 10 years’ jail after being charged for a second time over an alleged $300 million tax scam involving a string of companies stretching from Samoa to Switzerland.
Page 8: Family First senator Bob Day’s beleaguered housing group owed a Melbourne construction firm more than $300,000 in February and regularly failed to pay invoices within the 45-day terms, according to documents supplied by the firm.
Page 19: The $622 billion self-managed superannuation fund sector is becoming an increasing part of the “shadow banking” market financing residential property developers even as traditional lenders step back.
AGL Energy has warned that “blind Freddy” could see that a disorderly, hasty transition away from conventional coal-fired electricity will trigger “chaos”.
The head of global energy giant Chevron says the company’s massive Gorgon liquefied natural gas plant is shaking off its early teething problems, with the $55 billion project’s first train closing in on its targeted capacity.
Page 21: A group of real estate agents has formally withdrawn an attempt to collectively bargain for ad rates after the corporate watchdog scotched the move on competition grounds.
The Nine Network’s Andrew Backwell, a key programming executive, has resigned after 14 years with the free-to-air TV group following a ratings plunge.
Bunnings Warehouse boss John Gillam has talked down the risks from Britain’s planned exit from the European Union while urging patience as the group “learns like crazy” through its daring British expansion.
Page 22: BHP Billiton’s half-owned Samarco iron ore mine in Brazil is edging closer to missing bond payments amid delays to restarting the mine, where 19 people were killed when a tailings dam burst last December.
Questionable construction work on a single house may have been enough to force the suspension of OceanaGold’s $1 billion copper-gold mine in The Philippines.
Page 23: National Australia Bank has paid $6.5 million in compensation to victims of poor financial advice over the past 18 months as part of its wealth advice response program.
Page 25: Global container volumes are on track for zero growth this year, which would mark the sector’s worst performance since the 2009 economic crisis and a sure catalyst for further bankruptcies and possible acquisitions in the beleaguered shipping industry.
Page 26: Perth’s Elizabeth Quay precinct has taken another step forward after WA developer Fini Group and offshore-backed AAIG released designs for a $500 million hotel, residential and office precinct.
The West Australian
Page 13: The WA arm of real estate giant Colliers International is disputing any liability under a guarantee it signed promising to “pay all moneys due and payable” by building company CPD Group to subcontractors on an apartment complex in Rockingham.
Page 43: An Augusta-based company using a revolutionary artificial reef system to grow abalone wants to expand operations to Bremer Bay, Esperance and Port Lincoln in South Australia.
Professional investors appear to be betting that two big gold discoveries made by Breaker Resources 100km east of Kalgoorlie are connected by a rich vein of the precious metal.
SABMiller shareholders have backed a £79 billion ($134 billion) takeover by Anheuser-Busch InBev, paving the way for the biggest deal in British corporate history.
Page 44: South Africa’s Gold Fields, the world’s seventh-biggest gold producer, has flagged an increase in exploration spending at its Australian operations next year.
Austal is proposing to extend a scheme in which chief executive David Singleton gets paid 30 per cent of his fixed salary in shares.
