Morning Headlines

Barnett comes out swinging in fight to secure third term

Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett has ditched his usual Christmas and new year holidays to dig in and fight for political survival. The Fin

Trump border tax option could push US dollar up 25 per cent

A radical corporate tax overhaul that Republicans are trying to sell to Donald Trump involving tariff-like tax penalties on imports could push the US dollar up by as much as 25 per cent, economists say. The Fin

Petrol deal buys Woolies time on Big W

Market watchers say troubled discount department store Big W is still the most likely asset next to be put up for sale by Woolworths, but the war chest created by last week’s sale of its petrol business has given the retail giant time to improve Big W’s performance.

Chinese donor calls for reform on political gifts

One of Australia’s largest individual political donors has called for direct contributions to politicians to be banned and criticised Scott Morrison’s handling of the Ausgrid power sale under which a winning Chinese-dominated bid was rejected on national security grounds. The Aus

Banks plead for budget repair

Catherine Livingstone has warned that Australian families will ultimately bear the brunt of the nation losing its AAA credit rating, with the new Commonwealth Bank chairwoman joining with her major-bank counterparts in stressing the urgent need for a bipartisan political approach to budget repair. The Aus

Hotel boom a game changer

The six-star Crown Towers is the first of 24 new hotels to open in and around Perth over the next three years, adding almost 4000 rooms to the local market at a cost of more than $3 billion. The West

New markets fire Woodside

One of Woodside Petroleum’s most senior executives says the era of the LNG mega-project is over and that the local oil and gas company would generate new opportunities such as fuelling ships and powering the Pilbara. The West

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: Corporate watchdog Greg Medcraft has warned Australia’s banks still have ‘‘subcultures’’ that are failing to get the message about the need to live up to community expectations after a year riddled with scandal.

Investors in fund manager Hunter Hall say founder Peter Hall’s shock decision to quit the firm and dump his entire stake is disappointing and irrational.

Page 2: Greg Medcraft still believes ASIC’s registry business would be better off in the hands of an IT business, despite the Turnbull government’s decision not to proceed with its sale.

Page 3: The CEO of Australia’s largest crowdfunding platform says the failure of politicians to pass equity crowdfunding legislation has hindered business growth and caused confusion about what crowdfunding methods are legal in Australia.

Home prices defied forecasts they would stagnate in 2016 to grow more than they did during the ‘‘boom’’ year of 2015, according to year-end figures from property research firm CoreLogic.

Page 4: Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett has ditched his usual Christmas and new year holidays to dig in and fight for political survival.

Page 5: Cyber security experts have warned that the federal government must put aside budget deficit concerns and invest in upgrading ageing computer systems vulnerable to a damaging attack from a foreign state.

Page 6: Expats living in the home of UBS Group, drug maker Novartis and commodity trader Glencore earn an average salary of $US188,275 ($260,930) a year. That’s the highest in the world and almost twice the global average, according to HSBC.

Page 11: A radical corporate tax overhaul that Republicans are trying to sell to Donald Trump involving tariff-like tax penalties on imports could push the US dollar up by as much as 25 per cent, economists say.

Page 13: Bankers expect a busy 2017 for mergers and acquisitions as boards embark on deals to buoy growth or shake off noncore assets.

Dick Smith’s spectacular collapse on January 4, 2016, less than two years after it was floated by Anchorage Capital Partners in an oversubscribed $520 million initial public offer, has soured investor appetite for private equity floats and has brought home the risks facing non-executive directors.

Page 14: Market watchers say troubled discount department store Big W is still the most likely asset next to be put up for sale by Woolworths, but the war chest created by last week’s sale of its petrol business has given the retail giant time to improve Big W’s performance.

Page 15: This is shaping up as the year the long-predicted wave of mergers and acquisitions in the oil sector will pick up pace as cashed-up players look to get most bang for their buck in an environment of firming oil prices, according to the experts.

A world away from the scandal-hit mining industry of the Democratic Republic of Congo stands the Thackaringa project in NSW’s mining heartland of Broken Hill, said to host one of the world’s largest undeveloped cobalt reserves.

Page 17: One of Australia’s most private and best performing fund managers will close its doors to new and existing money from February 1 as capacity issues weigh on returns.

The Australian

Page 1: Health fund members in regional and remote areas would be given larger Medicare payments or more generous insurance subsidies to compensate for a lack of services, under proposals put to the Turnbull government.

One of Australia’s largest individual political donors has called for direct contributions to politicians to be banned and criticised Scott Morrison’s handling of the Ausgrid power sale under which a winning Chinese-dominated bid was rejected on national security grounds.

Page 5: Internet retailers will join a Jewish lobby group, the B’nai B’rith Anti-Defamation Commission, in an Australian-first “anticyber-hate” campaign aimed at preventing the sale of books and items such as Nazi memorabilia that could promote hatred of particular groups.

Page 13: Catherine Livingstone has warned that Australian families will ultimately bear the brunt of the nation losing its AAA credit rating, with the new Commonwealth Bank chairwoman joining with her major-bank counterparts in stressing the urgent need for a bipartisan political approach to budget repair.

Top fund managers have warned of more pain ahead for the embattled small caps sector of the sharemarket as some of the nation’s top super funds pull hundreds of millions of dollars worth of mandates from boutique investment houses.

BHP Billiton looks to have drilled the second well of its closely watched Caribbean exploration program without hitting a big oil discovery, quietly moving its drill rig from the Burrokeet site off Trinidad and Tobago to the US Gulf of Mexico.

Page 14: The corporate watchdog’s court action against Westpac wealth management arm BT Financial Group for allegedly breaching advice laws when cross-selling superannuation products may just be the “tip of the iceberg” for future cases involving the big banks’ nest egg products, Industry Super Australia chief David Whiteley has warned.

Page 15: US apparel group HanesBrands is reaping the gains of its well-timed $1.1 billion takeover of historic Australian clothing manufacturer Pacific Brands, with the final financial accounts for the local business that owns brands such as Bonds, Berlei, Jockey, Rio and Holeproof showing a strong turnaround in full-year profitability in 2016.

The West Australian

Page 4: A concert with prominent WA artists has been held as part of continued protests against Perth’s controversial Freight Link.

Page 6: Average petrol prices are expected to spike today to the most expensive seen in Perth for 18 months.

Page 14: Perth’s internet speeds are so bad that only 5 per cent of residents consider their home connection “fast”, a poll has revealed.

Page 20: The six-star Crown Towers is the first of 24 new hotels to open in and around Perth over the next three years, adding almost 4000 rooms to the local market at a cost of more than $3 billion.

Page 45: One of Woodside Petroleum’s most senior executives says the era of the LNG mega-project is over and that the local oil and gas company would generate new opportunities such as fuelling ships and powering the Pilbara.

Local nickel producers will be eyeing political developments in Indonesia with concern early this year, as its Government considers relaxing export bans on low-grade ore that have helped boost commodity prices.