Morning Headlines

Trump tax cuts must be matched

The Coalition has seized on weak wages growth to fire up support for company tax cuts amid warnings from business that Australia must match Donald Trump’s tax cut plans or miss out on up to $400 billion in global investment. The Fin

Woolworths braces for Big W aftershocks

Woolworths shareholders are bracing for further write-downs and bigger losses at Big W following the surprise departure of chief executive Sally Macdonald after less than a year in the job. The Fin

How Chinese billionaire plans to fix Santos woes

The Chinese billionaire whose gas company ENN owns 11.7 per cent of Santos says he holds ‘‘grave fears’’ for the future of the oil and gas firm and it must change quickly under a four-point fix-it plan he has outlined to the chairman and the chief executive. The Fin

Wesfarmers explores $2b coal mine sales

Wesfarmers is accelerating plans to divest its coal business, having sought expressions of interest from companies interested in acquiring the two mines. The Fin

Weak wages knock economy pick-up hopes

Wage growth has dropped to a record low with average increases barely matching the depressed inflation rate and casting a shadow over both Reserve Bank and Treasury hopes that household spending will fire the economy over the next year. The Aus

ConsMin sale spurs WA hope

The Ukrainian billionaire who paid $1.2 billion for Consolidated Minerals at the peak of the boom has sold the manganese miner to China Inc in a deal which observers hope could see production restart at the mothballed Woodie Woodie mine in the Pilbara. The West

Alinta joins green rush in $5m wind power deal

Gas and electricity provider Alinta has bought the rights to develop what would be WA’s biggest wind farm amid a scramble by power companies to meet the Federal Government’s revised green energy target. The West

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: The Coalition has seized on weak wages growth to fire up support for company tax cuts amid warnings from business that Australia must match Donald Trump’s tax cut plans or miss out on up to $400 billion in global investment.

Page 3: The sharemarket float of messaging phenomenon Snapchat is likely to make chief executive Evan Spiegel and his Australian fiancee, model Miranda Kerr, one of the world’s richest young couples.

Diners in Australia would be forgiven for thinking the days of the white tablecloth are numbered as key fine-dining institutions close their doors this year and acclaimed hatted chefs such as Guillaume Brahimi, Neil Perry and Mark Best refocus their business interests towards more-casual restaurant offerings.

Page 5: The High Court has ruled unanimously that a tax scheme orchestrated by Sydney accountant Vanda Gould that channelled more than $1 billion in currency flows linked to share trading was fake, drawing new guidelines for the Tax Office to determine who controls tax haven companies.

The Turnbull government has decided to have the Senate debate and most likely vote on its two key industrial relations bills during the next two weeks, in an indication it is optimistic of securing their passage.

Page 9: Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham has warned Australian universities they need to prepare for an onslaught of ‘‘intense global competition’’ that will affect both their high-revenue international students as well as local students who will have new online education options.

Science and technology graduates are finding it hard to get a job despite hype around the need for more people to study science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) at university.

Page 14: Fund flows into exchange-traded products remained healthy this year as investors continue to embrace these relatively cheap financial instruments for their low-cost and easy-to-trade properties. More of the same is expected for 2017.

Page 15: With so much happening in global markets, expect another active year for contracts-for-difference traders in 2017, with plenty of action happening in Europe and the US in particular to drive underlying markets.

Page 17: Woolworths shareholders are bracing for further write-downs and bigger losses at Big W following the surprise departure of chief executive Sally Macdonald after less than a year in the job.

Pact Group chairman Raphael ‘‘Ruffy’’ Geminder has played down the prospect of potential higher funding costs slowing the company’s aggressive acquisition strategy despite the sell-off in global bond markets after the recent United States election.

UGL chief executive Ross Taylor is set to receive a $7.6 million payout if CIMIC’s $524 million hostile takeover goes ahead, sparking complaints from shareholders that he should not have been allowed to vote on the deal because he has a vested interest in it succeeding.

Page 19: GrainCorp chief executive Mark Palmquist is urging further government investment in the nation’s country rail freight network after higher costs left east coast wheat growers uncompetitive in global export markets.

The Chinese billionaire whose gas company ENN owns 11.7 per cent of Santos says he holds ‘‘grave fears’’ for the future of the oil and gas firm and it must change quickly under a four-point fix-it plan he has outlined to the chairman and the chief executive.

Wesfarmers is accelerating plans to divest its coal business, having sought expressions of interest from companies interested in acquiring the two mines.

Page 20: A former FBI special agent who oversaw the bureau’s investigation of the 9/11 terrorism attacks says nation states are at risk of cyber terrorism attacks, with many foreign nations already having the capability to take down a foreign country’s infrastructure assets.

Page 21: National Australia Bank has said the corporate regulator’s description of alleged manipulation of the bank bill swap rate is ‘‘embarrassing’’ because its traders alone did not have enough power in the market to actually move the benchmark interest rate.

Wealth management software firm Bravura Solutions has blamed general market volatility in the aftermath of Donald Trump’s US election victory as the cause for the firm’s shaky start to life on the ASX.

Page 22: High-end car dealership company Autosports Group gave 500 of its employees $1000 of free shares ahead of its solid debut on the Australian sharemarket, with chief executive Nick Pagent saying he feels ‘‘energised’’ by the group becoming a public company.

Page 23: SurfStitch co-founder Justin Cameron says he is keeping a ‘‘watching brief’’ and may attempt to privatise the online retailer if the right opportunity arises.

Telstra investors want details on how Australia’s largest telecommunications provider will battle intense competition in the mobile market from a resurgent Vodafone and an aggressive Optus.

Page 29: Facebook is hoping to improve its relationship with advertisers and publishers by opening up the platform to more scrutiny and admitting to several ‘‘bugs’’ in its metrics.

ABC managing director Michelle Guthrie has shaken off criticism of a coproduction deal with US streaming giant Netflix, saying it allows the government broadcaster to meet the expectations for high-quality programming that Australian viewers have.

Foxtel chief executive Peter Tonagh has set himself an ambitious challenge of trying to convince the half of Australians who don’t pay for television or streaming to sign up for subscription content.

Page 32: It’s not by a lot, but for the first time in two years markets are betting that the Reserve Bank is more likely to lift rates than lower them next year.

Page 33: Iron ore has plunged, running out of steam after its surge to multi-year highs last week following Donald Trump’s shock presidential election victory.

The Australian

Page 1: Former coal billionaire, now bankrupt, Nathan Tinkler was claiming to be the battlers’ friend when he stood up in a packed conservatorium in Muswellbrook yesterday to back the Drayton South coal mine against the objections of the NSW Hunter Valley’s famous horse studs.

Wage growth has dropped to a record low with average increases barely matching the depressed inflation rate and casting a shadow over both Reserve Bank and Treasury hopes that household spending will fire the economy over the next year.

Page 2: Australia will need to “mobilise investment” to guarantee the energy security of renewable power, the world’s peak energy agency warns about a coming $7.5 trillion global outlay on wind and solar power.

Page 6: Only 24 of more than 1000 indigenous programs show clear evidence of success and meet rigorous assessment criteria, a new government report finds as it questions the efficiency of the $5.9 billion spent on reducing the disadvantage of First Australians.

Page 7: Survivors of the Black Saturday bushfires have called for Maurice Blackburn to take responsibility for a multi-million-dollar tax bill laid against its class actions and pay it from the firm’s own pockets instead of stripping it from victims.

Page 19: Business Council chief Jennifer Westacott will urge the government and her members to keep on the job with things they can control amid the global volatility that has emerged with the Donald Trump election victory and Brexit vote.

National Australia Bank has labelled as “embarrassing” the corporate regulator’s allegations relating to its rigging of one of the nation’s key interest rates, stepping up the industry’s defence against the landmark cases.

Page 21: Virgin Australia chief John Borghetti has moved to temper board and shareholder disappointment over the airline’s languishing financial state, saying it will increase its headcount over the next three years as new routes into the US and Asia open up and as it continues on its recovery to profit.

As a record grain harvest of up to 49 million tonnes starts to pour into Australia’s silos and bunkers, leading grain handler GrainCorp has reported a disappointing end to the 2015-16 financial year.

SurfStitch has admitted it is leaking cash faster than previously anticipated as a spurned suitor raised the pressure on the troubled online surfware retailer’s board.

After health insurers submitted their 2017 premium proposals to Health Minister Sussan Ley last week, Macquarie analysts tipped that Medibank would increase its average premiums by 4.25 per cent, down from this year’s rise of 5.64 per cent. Medibank said earlier that this year’s rise was its lowest average premium in four years.

Losses from wild storms across the Sunraysia producers’ belt surrounding Mildura last Friday are escalating quickly at a time local insurance companies with businesses in New Zealand brace for a deluge of claims after an earthquake four days ago.

Page 22: Iron ore’s federal budget deficit-busting potential is on the wane, with prices for the Australia’s biggest export earner retreating sharply from near two-year highs.

Foxtel chief Peter Tonagh says the pay-TV operator is seriously contemplating a move into producing TV content as he ponders how to assemble the right mix of assets to stay relevant as the media landscape undergoes tectonic shifts.

Page 23: Even before Donald Trump’s election victory, Australian share fund managers and superannuation funds were recording losses as investors grappled with uncertain and choppy markets.

Page 24: A conglomerate controlled by one of Indonesia’s wealthiest families is planning to list power assets in an initial public offering of up to $US800 million ($1.06 billion) in Singapore, in what could be the city’s biggest IPO in four years.

Page 25: Snap has confidentially filed paperwork for an initial public offering that may value the popular messaging platform at as much as $US25 billion ($33bn), a major step toward what would be one of the highest-profile stock debuts in recent years.

The West Australian

Page 4: Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says the ascendancy of Donald Trump requires Australia to increase engagement with the US, not reduce it.

Page 9: Some Serco staff at Fiona Stanley Hospital were made redundant yesterday as the company reviews its services. A Serco spokesman said 20 people would be affected but there would be no impact on patient care. United Voice WA secretary Carolyn Smith said Serco sent the staff home after they were told of the company’s decision.

Page 12: Wages across WA and the rest of the country are growing at their slowest rate on record, delivering another blow to the economy and raising doubts about how homeowners will service ever-increasing mortgages.

Page 13: Gripes about internet connections and speeds have surged, with the roll out of the National Broadband Network blamed in part for the rise.

Page 48: The Ukrainian billionaire who paid $1.2 billion for Consolidated Minerals at the peak of the boom has sold the manganese miner to China Inc in a deal which observers hope could see production restart at the mothballed Woodie Woodie mine in the Pilbara.

Western Force are among dozens of major sporting clubs and organisations caught up in the collapse of a leading supplier of playing strips.

Wellard has tapped a former senior lieutenant of Gina Rinehart to fill the board vacancy created by Sharon Warburton’s sudden exit two months ago.

Page 49: Gas and electricity provider Alinta has bought the rights to develop what would be WA’s biggest wind farm amid a scramble by power companies to meet the Federal Government’s revised green energy target.

Perth’s Shark Mitigation Systems is hoping for a surge in interest in its camouflaged wetsuits after a new study revealed great whites took more than four times as long to recognise them than traditional black wetsuits.

Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines general manager Ian Butler is anxious to see Barrick’s half of the Super Pit sell before the end of the year, as the mine’s operator prepares to keep it operational until at least 2035.

Page 50: Artificial intelligence company OpenDNA has had an indifferent first day on the Australian Securities Exchange, dropping 17.5 per cent from its listing price.