Today's Business Headlines

Reform agenda lost in class war

Business leaders have blasted Labor for welching on its reform promises after a shock budget decision to abandon tax cuts for 770,000 companies cast new doubt on the Gillard government’s commitment to live up to its vows. The Aus

Electric shock of $220 a year looms in budget

Electricity prices are likely to rise almost 15 per cent in next week's state budget after Treasurer Christian Porter said the carbon tax would have a bigger effect on bills than expected. The West

Juniors seek port certainty

Atlas Iron chairman David Flanagan has warned junior miners will struggle to fund the vital South West Creek expansion at Port Hedland by 2015 unless they get long-term certainty over their leases at the harbour. The West

Cuts to building watchdog get industry barking mad

The effectiveness of the new building industry watchdog will be undermined because the federal government's funding cuts ask it to do more with less, a former industry regulator says. The Fin

Miners trigger tax loophole

Japanese giant Mitsui is the latest global resources conglomerate to reveal it will enjoy an income-tax benefit as a result of Australia’s mining tax. The Aus

THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:

Page 1: Electricity prices are likely to rise almost 15 per cent in next week's state budget after Treasurer Christian Porter said the carbon tax would have a bigger effect on bills than expected.

Gina Rinehart has released her grip on the family trust at the centre of a multi-billion dollar battle with three of her four children, giving up the right to decide if and when payments are made to them.

Page 6: Colin Barnett has committed to providing funding for extra child health nurses as he seeks up to shore up the government's compassionate credentials ahead of a state budget set to deliver more pain in household bills.

Page 9: Julia Gillard has chalked up her first budget win, with crossbenchers late yesterday backing plans to pay hundreds of dollars to 1.3 million families to help with the cost of their child's education.

Page 10: Wayne Swan has warned that the government will drive through more spending cuts if the budget's wafer-thin surplus is put at risk.

Page 11: The Gillard government's efforts to sell its sharing-the-boom budget were undermined by concerns that WA's plummeting share of GST revenue would stymie the state's ability to generate sufficient wealth for the rest of the country.

Business: Atlas Iron chairman David Flanagan has warned junior miners will struggle to fund the vital South West Creek expansion at Port Hedland by 2015 unless they get long-term certainty over their leases at the harbour.

Mirabela Nickel last night insisted it was on track “operationally and corporately” as the Brazil-focused miner tried to allay investor concern it was in a terminal decline.

Straits Resources has braved the deteriorating capital market to tap equity investors for the second time in three months.

BHP Billiton yesterday added to market speculation its interest in nickel was fast evaporating by announcing it had merged the stainless steel materials unit with another embattled arm, aluminium.

Kagara managing director Geoff Day has apologised to creditors of the base metals miner as he blamed a price and financial squeeze for its plunge into administration.

Despite dodging a bullet after speculated cuts to diesel fuel rebates failed to materialise in the budget, miners remain concerned they will eventually be targeted by Canberra along the lines of a separate cut for heavy haulage vehicles.

Mermaid Marine Australia is facing fresh legal action over a Gulf of Mexico storm tragedy by the widow of an Australian offshore worker.

Southern Cross Goldfields is about to advance its plans to become the only producer in WA's Marda region, north of Southern Cross, with the looming release of a feasibility study on its major project.

Broad weakness among resource stocks compounded pressure on Iluka Resources yesterday, cutting another 8.3 per cent from the stock, despite analysts maintaining their neutral recommendations.

THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:

Page 1: The federal government's adviser on transforming Australia into a financial centre, Mark Johnson, has condemned a surprise doubling in the budget of withholding tax for foreigners investing in managed investment trusts.

The dollar fell close to parity with the US dollar, hitting $US1.0046 on concerns that the resources boom was in danger of petering out because weaker demand from Europe would hit China's economy.

Page 3: Australia's richest person, Gina Rinehart, has offered her children access to share in the family-owned Hancock Prospecting, but hasn't paid any dividends from the family's mining empire.

Page 4: BHP Billiton has been forced to provide more information to workers affected by the closure of the loss-making Norwich Park mine following orders from Fair Work Australia.

Page 7: Embattled MP Craig Thomson averted a humiliating defeat for the government in Parliament by promising to make a comprehensive statement on explosive allegations against him as key crossbenchers prepared to side with the Coalition.

Page 12: Leading company directors have slammed the federal government for dipping into the reserves of corporate Australia to fund political handouts, warning that business is not a bottomless pit.

Page 15: The effectiveness of the new building industry watchdog will be undermined because the federal government's funding cuts ask it to do more with less, a former industry regulator says.

Business groups have questioned whether Wayne Swan's budget addresses the urgent issues facing companies including skills shortages, rising costs and a loss of international competitiveness.

Page 17: The federal government faces a multi-billion dollar blowout in the cost of closing dirty power generators due to the prospect of a future low carbon price and a Coalition win at the next election.

Page 27: A dramatic fall in Mirabela Nickel's share price yesterday sparked fears that the resources boom is faltering as weakening European demand and China's slowing growth continue to weigh heavily on investors.

Page 30: West Australian premier Colin Barnett says the state will move swiftly to ensure all market players can access ports, after the government moved to free up land for Anketell Point Port development.

Page 60: Australian cities rank among the world's most expensive places to park as employment levels remain robust and new supply is limited.

Page 64: Darren Pateman, managing director of Western Australia's leading apartment builder, Finbar, says the company largely shunned Perth's outer suburbs to avoid clogged planning pipelines and an aversion to higher-density housing by councils.

THE AUSTRALIAN:

Page 1: Business leaders have blasted Labor for welching on its reform promises after a shock budget decision to abandon tax cuts for 770,000 companies cast new doubt on the Gillard government’s commitment to live up to its vows.

The safest Labor seats, and some of the poorest in the capital cities, will collect the bulk of Wayne Swan’s surplus handouts.

The children of Gina Rinehart can now access their almost-quarter stake in the family’s iron ore empire at any time — but they could then face capital gains tax bills that would ruin them.

Peter Costello tried to re-enter parliament to realise his thwarted ambition to lead the Liberal Party to an election victory, his former best friend and one-time closest political ally has revealed.

Page 2: Craig Thomson had failed until last night to disclose to parliament that the ALP had been helping to fund his legal fight against corruption allegations.

Page 4: Ford Australia plummeted to its worst result last year with a $290 million loss blamed on a nightmare run of restructuring, poor sales, natural disasters and a one-off tax adjustment.

Kate Lamont, the West Australian winemaker and restaurateur hand-picked by Premier Colin Barnett to contest the blue-ribbon Liberal seat of Churchlands, has been forced to defend her role in securing government sponsorship for last year’s disastrous Kimberley Ultramarathon.

Page 6: Labor's plan to lift the debt ceiling for a third time drew harsh criticism from the opposition yesterday, while economists argued revenues were unlikely to grow as quickly as the government thought.

Business: Japanese giant Mitsui is the latest global resources conglomerate to reveal it will enjoy an income-tax benefit as a result of Australia’s mining tax.

Shares in Aquila Resources closed at a three-year low yesterday even after West Australian Premier Colin Barnett signalled the Perth-based miner could soon win the right to build the first stage of a crucial multi-user port at Anketell Point in the Pilbara.

Fears that ASX-listed Brazilian nickel producer Mirabela cannot avoid a highly dilutive equity raising sent the group’s shares into freefall yesterday.

Department store chain David Jones has announced three senior management appointments to assist its turnaround strategy as it braces for a fall of up to 40 per cent in full-year profit.

The Virgin Australia-Air New Zealand alliance is causing more pain for Qantas, with a plan to boost capacity between Auckland and Perth by 20 per cent in the new financial year.

Downer EDI has reiterated profit guidance for investors and outlined its strategy to build up asset management across the group.

BHP Billiton plans to merge its struggling nickel and aluminium units to make them big enough to remain within the mining giant, in a clear signal it is not planning to sell either outright.

Leading business economists say the 2012-13 federal budget’s core assumptions of strong Asian and especially Chinese economic performance contain risks, but are unlikely to lead to the budget unravelling.

Companies in the booming resources sector could face millions of dollars in extra costs and their employees could pay more tax on redundancy packages under federal government changes to living-away-from-home allowances and golden handshakes.

The mining industry has been warned not to become complacent after the federal budget failed to hit the booming sector with new revenue grabs, with fears extra tax initiatives to milk miners could be introduced later in the year.

THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:

Page 1: A suitcase intercepted during a police raid on the HSU's Pitt St headquarters last week is at the centre of a legal case. The first payments from the Gillard government's SchoolKids Bonus will go to families next month after the legislation passed through the lower house. A generation of women risk not having enough superannuation when they retire because they have spent their careers in part-time work. Super funds have reacted angrily to cost-cutting measures in the 2012-2013 budget.

Page 2: Independent MP Rob Oakeshott will wait to hear Craig Thomson's explanations for allegations against him in the Fair Work Australia report before deciding whether to back the Coalition in taking action against him.

Page 3: Police and the NSW government have launched more than 1000 prosecutions against trucking bosses over speeding truck drivers.

World: The British PM David Cameron texted disgraced former News of the World editor in the week she quit as News International boss, amid fallout from the phone hacking scandal.

Business: BHP Billiton has moved most of its struggling assets into a single division, the Aluminium and Nickel unit.

Sport: The NRL judiciary's decision to suspend Dragons player Matt Prior for five matches after his high shot against Cowboys player Johnathan Thurston on Friday was not as harsh as Prior's team feared

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:

Page 1: The ALP funded ex-Labor MP Craig Thomson's legal bills. Police investigate whether a second person was involved in the murder of Brisbane woman Allison Baden-Clay.

Page 2: Former Labor MP Craig Thomson failed to declare that he had been receiving legal assistance from the ALP "for months" to fight allegations he improperly spent union funds. Peter Slipper continues to chair key parliamentary committees and host overseas delegations even though he has stood aside from his position as Parliamentary Speaker.

Page 3: Friends and family attended a funeral on Wednesday to mourn Sydney mother Mijin Shin, who died last week when she was hit by a bus.

World: A Saudi double-agent who infiltrated al-Qaeda helped the CIA stop a would-be suicide bomber.

Business: Big business says "breach of faith" by government to cut company tax could cost jobs. The Australian dollar is falling back towards parity against the greenback as the European debt crisis gathers steam.

Sport: The NRL judiciary has suspended Dragons player Matt Prior for five matches after his high shot against Cowboys player Johnathan Thurston on Friday.

THE AGE:

Page 1: As key independents waver over Craig Thomson affair Julia Gillard's numbers in parliament start looking a little shaky. A bid by Peter Costello to return to politics is thwarted by Josh Frydenberg refusing to vacate the blue ribbon seat of Kooyong. Victorian Supreme Court Chief Justice Marilyn Warren says bureaucrats' relentless drive on financial targets has turned the courts into little more than "car factories".

Page 2: Mystery surrounds the black bag of union boss Michael Williamson taken by police during the raid on HSU offices. Fair Work Australia president wants a name change saying its reputation has been damaged over the inquiry into Craig Thomson.

Page 3: Report finds that reliability of Victoria's electricity supply has deteriorated while the energy companies profits have grown. Cold case detectives charge a man with the murder of an 84-year-old man in Sydney 20 years ago. City to spend $5m building 15km of new bike lanes through the Melbourne's CBD.

World: David Cameron texted Rebekah Brooks when she quit as News International chief telling her to keep her head up, according to updated biography on the British prime minister.

Business: Boardroom coup dumps Billabong CEO Derek O'Neill and installs former Target boss and its special retail consultant Launa Inman.

Sport: AFL Coaches Association weighs in on the tackling law as players continue to stage manage for free kicks by ducking their heads into tackles.

THE HERALD SUN:

Page 1: Australia's growing welfare budget is costing the average single worker $5000 a year. AFL players want the State of Origin back.

Page 2: Ford workers fear more job cuts after motor company posted a $290 million loss. Craig Thomson fails to disclose that Labor paid his latest legal bills.

Page 3: A young police graduate wants to follow in the footsteps of her father who was head of Special Operations Group before he died climbing a Himalayan mountain.

World: Left wing MP says he is no longer bound by austerity promises as he tries to form a Greek government.

Business: Business says breach of promise by government to cut company tax could cost jobs.

Sport: Players want to bring back the AFL State of Origin, possibly as soon as next year.

THE CANBERRA TIMES:

Page 1: ACT Treasurer Andrew Barr to fight back against federal budget cuts; Labor's federal ACT MPs lament public service pain; Memorial fund to carry on legacy of woman killed last week when she was struck by a stolen car
Page 2: Cash plan passed after Craig Thomson vows to give an explanation to parliament
Page 3: ACT business says cuts not as deep as under John Howard in 1996

World: Turmoil as left-winger rejects EU, Greek deal

Business: Dept store executive jumps into Billabong

Sport: Desperate Jake White tries to woo Stephen Larkham back to Brumbies