Sims slams easy route to growth
The economy is suffering because too many Australian companies are taking the ‘‘easy route’’ of buying out domestic competitors rather than chasing ‘‘dynamic’’ growth in new markets, says competition watchdog Rod Sims. The Fin
Mining, energy exports tipped to top $200b
The value of Australia’s mining and energy exports is forecast to be higher in fiscal 2017 than ever before, boosting company profits, government revenues and potentially helping Australia to avoid a technical recession. The Fin
US retailers buckle under Amazon might
As Amazon prepares to expand into Australia to compete against bricks and mortar retailers, the American e-commerce behemoth is destroying traditional retailers in the United States. The Fin
FIFO rig workers use special roster to duck tax
An American oil and gas drilling company, which operates two rigs off the WA coast, is running a 183-day-a-year roster for its overseas-based fly-in, fly-out workers so they are not resident in Australia for tax purposes, minimising or eliminating the Australian income tax liability on their six-figure salaries. The West
Signs of life in home market
Homebuyers are being urged to take advantage of Perth’s low house prices after figures revealed prices had increased in the final months of last year. The West
Investment dives despite mine rebound
Rebounding commodities prices have done nothing to boost the prospects of new Australian mining and energy projects, with the federal government forecaster slashing expectations for 2020 project investment by half as resource companies become increasingly averse to spending. The Aus
Growth-sapping GST must face overhaul: miners
Miners have called for a dramatic overhaul of the GST carve-up — warning that present rules are smashing the nation’s growth potential and urging a renewed reform push, including corporate tax cuts, curbs on union power, streamlined approvals processes and a crackdown on environmental activism. The Aus
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: The economy is suffering because too many Australian companies are taking the ‘‘easy route’’ of buying out domestic competitors rather than chasing ‘‘dynamic’’ growth in new markets, says competition watchdog Rod Sims.
Welfare and aged groups have blasted fearmongering over pension changes by Labor and the union movement that will trim benefits of wealthier retirees while boosting payments for seniors at the lower end of the income scale.
Page 3: Richer retirees would be better served by a superannuation system that pegged expectations for post-work income to a proportion of final salary, a parliamentary inquiry has been told.
Page 4: The value of Australia’s mining and energy exports is forecast to be higher in fiscal 2017 than ever before, boosting company profits, government revenues and potentially helping Australia to avoid a technical recession.
Commodity prices and export volumes may be going strong, but the investment phase of the boom is fast becoming a distant memory.
Page 5: Real estate agent Angus Raine has called for stamp duty breaks for empty nesters aged over 70 to increase the turnover of housing stock and improve housing affordability for families and first-home buyers.
Page 6: Property buyers in some of the nation’s swankiest suburbs are among those under most stress keeping up mortgage repayments, according to an analysis by postcode of income and debt levels.
Page 7: Jessica Rudd and Albert Tse have connections in China most Australian businesses can only dream about. Now they are working together and between them have two of the biggest and competing e-commerce platforms Alibaba and FD.com covered.
Page 9: Indonesia is planning regulation to ensure primary bond dealers produce only ‘‘factual’’ research, senior government officials said, a move that is likely to add to bankers’ concerns about a growing backlash over negative investment commentary.
Page 13: Graeme Cureton, the former Guinness Peat Group executive director and initial Bellamy’s Australia investor, says he backs the board spill push that is being led by fellow Bellamy’s shareholder, Tasmanian entrepreneur Jan Cameron.
Allan Gray, Australia’s top-performing fund for 2016, is hiring. But chief investment officer Simon Mawhinney says anyone with previous investing experience need not apply.
Page 15: As Amazon prepares to expand into Australia to compete against bricks and mortar retailers, the American e-commerce behemoth is destroying traditional retailers in the United States.
The man leading the turn-around of Australia’s biggest gold miner, Sandeep Biswas, has not given up hope that the Lihir gold mine may yet fulfil its potential to produce one million ounces of gold in a single year.
Page 17: Colonial First State data scientists are working with a team of computer engineering PhDs from the University of Technology, Sydney, to develop deep learning algorithms to predict investor responses to market shocks and tailor the communication of financial advice.
Federal Reserve governor Jerome Powell urged Congress to rewrite the Volcker Rule that restricts US banks from proprietary trading, while urging ‘‘a high degree of vigilance’’ against the build-up of financial risks amid improving US growth.
The Australian
Page 1: Mining and energy exports are set to hit a record $204 billion this year in a “ray of light” for the economy that could help prevent a downgrade of the nation’s AAA credit rating amid fears over the outlook for the federal budget.
Page 2: Australia’s sugar industry, an employer of thousands of people across the east coast and a major export sector, has warned that jobs are at risk as it faces significantly higher energy costs with the Queensland government’s regional electricity network, Ergon Energy, pushing for higher, and fewer, tariffs.
Miners have called for a dramatic overhaul of the GST carve-up — warning that present rules are smashing the nation’s growth potential and urging a renewed reform push, including corporate tax cuts, curbs on union power, streamlined approvals processes and a crackdown on environmental activism.
Page 13: Rebounding commodities prices have done nothing to boost the prospects of new Australian mining and energy projects, with the federal government forecaster slashing expectations for 2020 project investment by half as resource companies become increasingly averse to spending.
Troubled infant milk formula company Bellamy’s spent $5 million on consultants last year at a time the business was under sustained revenue and cost pressures because of restrictive regulatory changes in its key Chinese market and onerous take-or-pay supply contracts.
Page 14: One hundred and 11 days. That’s all that stands between Paladin Energy, the uranium miner once worth more than $5 billion, and collapse.
Page 15: Based on shareholder returns, some bank chief executives have had a more relaxing festive season than others.
Britain’s Green Investment Bank is set to be stripped of its prized assets once Australia’s Macquarie Group seizes control of the state-owned British lender later this month.
The West Australian
Page 6: An American oil and gas drilling company, which operates two rigs off the WA coast, is running a 183-day-a-year roster for its overseas-based fly-in, fly-out workers so they are not resident in Australia for tax purposes, minimising or eliminating the Australian income tax liability on their six-figure salaries.
Page 9: Homebuyers are being urged to take advantage of Perth’s low house prices after figures revealed prices had increased in the final months of last year.
Page 14: A former WA Federal MP has criticised a government program that gave politicians thousands of dollars to spend on small, community-based initiatives as blatant pork-barrelling.
Page 45: An $8 billion boost from higher iron ore prices is tipped to lift Australia’s mining and energy export earnings to a record $204 billion this year before a pullback in 2018, according to revised Federal forecasts.
WA’s biggest locally managed investment fund has jumped into a major US coal producer expected to benefit from president-elect Donald Trump’s softer environmental policies.