Morning Headlines

Business watchdog to probe Bankwest loans

The small business ombudsman has launched her own inquiry into the way thousands of Bankwest customers were allegedly treated in the wake of its takeover by the Commonwealth Bank. The West

Troubled contractor linked to failed company

The family behind a contractor facing more than $500,000 payment claims over a Kalbarri tourism project endured a corporate collapse 18 months ago. The West

Alinta fires AGL, Origin a warning shot

AGL Energy and Origin Energy are being warned they face a tit-for-tat price war in their core home gas retailing markets in the eastern states if they aggressively undercut market prices in their bid to win household customers in Western Australia. The Fin

ALP warms to Turnbull energy plan

Labor could back the Coalition’s compromise Low Emissions Target to combat climate change if it means putting an end to the decade-old policy war on emissions reduction policy, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten says. The Fin

Aldi effect brings down prices

Perth’s grocery prices have fallen from the second-most expensive in the country to the second cheapest within two years, a trend dubbed the Aldi effect. The West

Sunday rate cuts delayed until 2020

The Fair Work Commission has pushed back the full cuts to Sunday penalty rates in retail, fast-food, hospitality and pharmacy sectors as far as 2020, with only marginal cuts to be made this year. The Fin

Investor revolt builds steam in BHP battle

A former adviser to BHP Billiton and doyen of the Australian equity capital markets scene has launched an extraordinary attack on the strategy of the resources giant, including questioning its board appointment of Business Council of Australia president Grant King. The Aus

Gas explorers respond to PM’s demands

Exploration by east coast gas producers has started to stir in defiance of the broader plunge in petroleum drilling activity, which remains at the lowest level in more than a decade. The Aus

The Australian Financial Review 

Page 1: Labor could back the Coalition’s compromise Low Emissions Target to combat climate change if it means putting an end to the decade-old policy war on emissions reduction policy, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten says.

Page 3: The Fair Work Commission has pushed back the full cuts to Sunday penalty rates in retail, fast-food, hospitality and pharmacy sectors as far as 2020, with only marginal cuts to be made this year.

Page 5: Global mining giant Glencore has backed a move by the Turnbull government to adopt a more inclusive clean energy target that could include next generation coal power plants instead of just renewable energy.

Page 7: The corporate regulator has been alerted to potential breaches in the accounts of CPA Australia and its financial advice subsidiary and is making preliminary inquiries about whether to launch an investigation.

Page 13: The board of takeover target Spotless Group has resolved to push aggressively ahead with its ‘‘reset strategy’’, without any alterations, even if predator Downer EDI ends up failing in its $1.2 billion bid but then sits on the share register with a substantial minority stake.

E-commerce pioneer Catch Group is taking an ‘‘if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em’’ approach to the imminent arrival of Amazon, transforming its daily deals site into an online marketplace.

Page 15: AGL Energy and Origin Energy are being warned they face a tit-for-tat price war in their core home gas retailing markets in the eastern states if they aggressively undercut market prices in their bid to win household customers in Western Australia.

The Australian 

Page 1: A push within the Turnbull government to bring the leading intelligence and security agencies under a single national security ministry is believed to have settled on a model aligned with Britain’s Home Office, rejecting the US experience.

Big business has challenged employers to show that Sunday penalty rate cuts impacting on hundreds of thousands of workers within weeks will create jobs and deliver extra hours for existing employees.

Page 4: Federal Labor is baulking at union calls for company executives to face jail for deliberate underpayment of workers’ wages, saying the ALP is “wary of criminalising industrial relations matters”.

Fears the economy was lurching towards a recession have been scotched by strong growth in business sales and profits in the first three months of the year.

Page 17: A former adviser to BHP Billiton and doyen of the Australian equity capital markets scene has launched an extraordinary attack on the strategy of the resources giant, including questioning its board appointment of Business Council of Australia president Grant King.

The great property liquidation by embattled mining magnate-turned politician Clive Palmer is well under way.

Exploration by east coast gas producers has started to stir in defiance of the broader plunge in petroleum drilling activity, which remains at the lowest level in more than a decade.

Page 19: The mining industry has hit out at the Finkel review’s expected recommendation of a lowemissions target, saying ruling out new, more efficient coal power plants will threaten reliability.

The West Australian

Page 3: Perth’s grocery prices have fallen from the second-most expensive in the country to the second cheapest within two years, a trend dubbed the Aldi effect.

One of Australia’s biggest telcos will have to compensate 45,000 customers after the consumer watchdog found it had short-changed them on prepaid services over two years.

Page 11: Unions have vowed to fight plans to cut Sunday penalty rates for some of the nation’s lowest-paid workers as employers complain they will struggle without a quicker reduction in wages.

Page 12: Catholic educators have hit back at suggestions the sector is “funnelling” money from its disadvantaged schools to those in wealthier areas.

Page 15: The WA Museum is working with local Aboriginal groups to return more than 125 sets of ancestral remains held in its vaults.

Page 45: The small business ombudsman has launched her own inquiry into the way thousands of Bankwest customers were allegedly treated in the wake of its takeover by the Commonwealth Bank.

The family behind a contractor facing more than $500,000 payment claims over a Kalbarri tourism project endured a corporate collapse 18 months ago.

Page 46: The first positive sales month in four years has provided WA’s car dealers hope that the local market may finally be on the mend.

A former manager with Perth stockbroker State One has been banned for three years after showing “extremely poor judgment” by warning clients of a regulatory probe.