Greek Prime Minister cut adrift amid eurozone turmoil – The Aus; Revolt over high electricity prices – The Fin; Forrest to fund legal fight against mine tax – The West; Builder warns about end of ABCC – The Aus; Strong order book to deliver Macmahon a $45m bounce – The West
Greek Prime Minister cut adrift amid eurozone turmoil
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou lost the support of his cabinet last night after an unprecedented threat by European leaders to dump Greece from the eurozone and the EU. The Aus
Revolt over high electricity prices
Seven of Australia's largest companies, including Rio Tinto, Wesfarmers and Woolworths, have accused mostly state-owned electricity network companies of overcharging consumers to achieve bigger profits. The Fin
Forrest to fund legal fight against mine tax
Mining magnate Andrew Forrest is set to bankroll a High Court challenge against the resources tax as the industry claims BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto will not pay a cent of the tax.
The West
Builder warns about end of ABCC
Corruption and standover tactics will be ‘‘back in a flash’’ if Australia’s building watchdog is scrapped, according to construction boss Gerry Hanssen, who says the Gillard government is pandering to unions. The Aus
Strong order book to deliver Macmahon a $45m bounce
Strong demand from mining clients has led WA contractor Macmahon Holdings to forecast a net profit of more than $45 million for this financial year on the back of record revenue. The West
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Mining magnate Andrew Forrest is set to bankroll a High Court challenge against the resources tax as the industry claims BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto will not pay a cent of the tax.
Page 6: Julia Gillard has affirmed her intention to pump money into an international fund to fight economic catastrophe despite Opposition assertions Australia had no role in propping up Europe.
Page 11: The carpark at Burswood golf course will be sealed off tomorrow and security guards will surround the grounds, keeping the media and public far away from former world No. 1 golfer Tiger Woods.
Page 12: A decision by supermarket giant Coles to cut the price of milk to $1 a litre has been a win for consumers that had not badly affected Australia's dairy industry, a Senate inquiry has concluded.
Page 16: The poisonous relationship between the government and Rupert Murdoch's News Ltd newspapers has crashed to a new low, with senior Labor MPs accusing one of the mogul's largest newspapers of manufacturing stories to inflame leadership tensions.
Page 19: Drinking water in thousands of WA homes is considered too salty and fails to meet a key benchmark of national guidelines, according to a report released by the Water Corporation.
Page 22: New concerns have emerged over the proposed rapid-transit bus service from Ellenbrook – a centrepiece of the state government's public transport strategy for the next 20 years.
Business: ANZ chief executive Mike Smith is holding firm on his plans for expansion throughout Asia amid signs that targets set down when he took charge four years ago are becoming increasingly out of reach.
Australia's major banks are expected to sharpen their focus on costs and productivity gains in the year ahead, after fewer bad debts helped them to a combined cash profit of $24.4 billion in the weakest home loan market on record.
Strong demand from mining clients has led WA contractor Macmahon Holdings to forecast a net profit of more than $45 million for this financial year on the back of record revenue.
Grain handler CBH has warned getting the state's grain to port will be a juggling act this season, with harvest facing disruptions from late rain, industrial action among train drivers and a lack of rail capacity.
Extract Resources chief executive Jonathan Leslie expects other uranium miners to follow French giant Areva in suspending a mine development because of weak prices but he remains bullish on the longer term outlook as the group weighs options for its $US1.6 billion Namibian project.
More profit downgrades are tipped to follow OneSteel's dramatic announcement this week.
Carnegie Wave Energy is gearing up to announce the location of its first commercial demonstration wave energy project within 90 days as the company sizes up government funding opportunities and five sites around the globe.
Global markets may be in chaos but the sun is still shining on WA's gold sector, with companies taking advantage of a near-record gold price – it closed at $US1733.50/oz last night – to raise cash for acquisitions and project development.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: The European debt crisis is threatening to cost the Greek Prime Minister his job after Germany and France said Greece faced default and ejection from the euro zone.
ANZ Banking Group wants to buy more businesses in Asia after the region delivered 20 per cent profit growth in the bank's 2011 full-year result.
Page 3: Seven of Australia's largest companies, including Rio Tinto, Wesfarmers and Woolworths, have accused mostly state-owned electricity network companies of overcharging consumers to achieve bigger profits.
Julia Gillard's leadership is being tested by Labor backbenchers fearing an electoral backlash over moves to impose restrictions on poker machines.
Page 4: A Senate committee report on milk pricing has called for an independent review of competition laws but has recommended no action against the major retailers.
Coles' suppliers have complained to the ACCC that the company has bullied them into contributing to its $1 billion supply chain project upgrade.
Page 5: The mining tax will deliver more revenue than forecast, leaving the door open for Labor to win support for the tax from key independents.
Page 7: GM Holden has pushed for a “solid co-investment” program with Australian governments to help secure the future of the local car industry in the face of international competition for major investments.
Page 18: Global tourism giants are buying into the Sydney, Melbourne and Perth accommodation markets, citing strong corporate bookings.
Page 22: A pricing dispute which threatened 10 per cent of WA's electricity supplies is on the verge of being settled.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Greens' claims that there is no scientific proof coal-seam gas is better for the environment than coal have been undermined by a new expert report, which finds the carbon footprint of generating power from gas is up to 87 per cent smaller than that from coal.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou lost the support of his cabinet last night after an unprecedented threat by European leaders to dump Greece from the eurozone and the EU.
Australia, India and the US should form a trilateral security dialogue, partly to counter the challenge of China’s rising naval power.
Page 2: Enemies of dumped prime minister Kevin Rudd have accused him of feeding leadership speculation to destabilise Julia Gillard and trigger a leadership ballot.
Wayne Swan has branded Tony Abbott xenophobic after he called on Australia to boycott any increase in the International Monetary Fund’s funds to deal with the European financial crisis.
Retail sales have pulled out of a mid-year funk, with the third consecutive month of improved sales raising hopes for a good Christmas-shopping season.
Page 4: Wayne Swan has accused billionaire miner Andrew Forrest of trying to avoid paying tax, describing as ‘‘bunkum’’ a new report suggesting the world’s biggest miners will get a free ride under Labor’s planned mining tax.
Page 7: The Coalition has vowed to reverse compulsory superannuation increases granted to workers as part of its promise to rescind the mining tax.
Page 8: Resources-sector employers have declared that Labor’s workplace laws are out of kilter because they make it too easy for unions to strike while ‘‘setting the bar too high’’ for employers trying to stop industrial action.
Corruption and standover tactics will be ‘‘back in a flash’’ if Australia’s building watchdog is scrapped, according to construction boss Gerry Hanssen, who says the Gillard government is pandering to unions.
Holden has urged the federal government to increase subsidies to keep the car industry viable, after the engineers union warned that the company was planning to move engineering and design work to the US after 2014.
Farmers’ fears are growing that increased pressure from the dominant Coles and Woolworths supermarkets may force prices for farm produce dramatically down.
Business: ANZ Bank chief executive Mike Smith has criticised regulators for engineering a new wave of reform and red tape that will dramatically push up costs for banks around the world, as the global economy remains fractured.
Global financial markets yesterday were gripped by a fresh bout of fear that emergency moves to restore Europe’s economic stability could fail.
Extract Resources hopes to secure a mining licence from the Namibian government for its $US1.66 billion ($1.54bn) Husab uranium project by next month.
Building materials company Boral continues to be weighed down by the weak residential market, which is not showing any signs of improvement.
Woolworths chief executive Grant O’Brien’s five-year plan to restructure the retailer and restore earnings per share growth to 10 per cent has been welcomed by analysts, but investors will need to be patient to reap rewards.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: European leaders have issued an ultimatum to the Greek prime minister. The coalition has vowed to take back superannuation increases as part of its promise to rescind the mining tax. Thorpedo is putting his form to the test.
Page 2: Aziz Reza kisses a picture of his two-year-old daughter who perished in the asylum-seeker boat coming to Australia.
Page 3: Thousands of women are being potentially diagnosed with breast cancer through Australia's publicly funded Breast Screen program when the cancer would never have caused them problems, experts say.
World: Protesters from the Occupy Oakland movement have teemed into the city's port, the fifth-busiest container handler in the US.
Business: The Commonwealth Bank is understood to have shut down its proprietary trading desk as part of its efforts to curb risk-taking.
Sport: Shane Warne will make a return to cricket and play in the T20 Big Bash League.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: Schools that have been given control of staffing and finances have had remarkable improvements in academic results.
Page 2: Schools continued.
Page 3: The Angels' frontman Doc Neeson has been convicted of his fourth drink-driving offence.
World: Greece was last night threatened with enforced bankruptcy and ejection from the euro.
Business: It clearly takes a lot to impress investors in the ANZ Bank.
Sport: After three months of deception and broken promises, St George Illawarra blinked first in the Tim Moltzen saga.
THE COURIER MAIL:
Page 1: Queenslanders have been warned of high numbers of deadly eastern brown snakes this summer after a woman died from a snake bite in Warwick, southwest of Brisbane.
Page 3: Queensland farmers could be hit hardest as consumers reap the windfall of bargain milk lining the shelves of supermarkets
Page 4: Fire has ripped through a house in Grantham, sparking a frantic search for its owner overnight.
World: Cartoonists from a French satirical weekly that was firebombed as it published an edition that featured the Prophet Mohammed as its "guest editor" on the cover hit back in another newspaper yesterday.
Business: Australia's major banks have raked in more than $24 billion in profit, up more than 12 per cent in a year, but analysts warn the party may be over as global uncertainty weighs on growth prospects.
Sport: Pakistan's leading cricketers have gone from Lord's to Wandsworth Prison.
