Cash handouts and attacks on Greens fail to stop Labor vote slump – The Aus; Coal in demand as WA gas price soars – The West; BHP goes softly on big mining projects – The Fin; Wooldridges seeks $15m – The West; Forrest farewells $313m Fortescue paper profit – The West
Cash handouts and attacks on Greens fail to stop Labor vote slump
Labor's attempt to decouple itself from the Greens and its continuing shower of cash handouts to middle Australia have failed to lift its popularity, with the latest Newspoll putting the Gillard government’s primary vote at 28 per cent — two percentage points off its record low. The Aus
Coal in demand as WA gas price soars
The soaring price of natural gas has hit West Australian power producers, with generator demand for the fuel falling last year for the first time since the global financial crisis, figures show. The West
BHP goes softly on big mining projects
BHP Billiton is reviewing the number of contractors and staff across its mining mega-projects for potential cuts, the latest sign that it is unlikely to approve the expansion of its Olympic Dam copper-uranium mine in South Australia this year. The Fin
Wooldridges seeks $15m
Wooldridges, the state's biggest education supplier, and Corporate Express Australia are locked in a court battle over delivery delays which resulted in thousands of WA students starting school without ordered textbooks and stationery. The West
Forrest farewells $313m Fortescue paper profit
Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest waved goodbye to a $313 million paper fortune yesterday on a day in which Atlas Iron shares also slumped to fresh two-year lows because of widespread investor fears that iron ore prices were set for big falls. The West
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 3: Perth could be the first Australian city to have its own mascot as part of a $250,000 plan to engage children with the central business district.
Page 4: The federal government has been warned to brace for another record-breaking month of boat arrivals as people smugglers jam vessels with more asylum seekers to boost profits.
Labor warned yesterday of a “screaming demand” to diversify the WA economy to beyond “just mining” as business and the state government moved to hose down forecasts the mining boom is about to peak.
Page 8: The publicist for charity Strike A Chord, which is under investigation by Consumer Protection, has quit as support for the charity poured in on social media.
Page 13: Environmental authorities and police are investigating claims of sabotage after more than half a million litres of oil leaked from a storage tank metres from environmentally sensitive Cockburn Sound.
Page 16: Retiring Bassendean MP Martin Whitely has announced a bid to represent Federal Labor in the Senate while launching an attack on the man he believes has sewn up the spot – Right faction powerbroker Joe Bullock.
Business: Wooldridges, the state's biggest education supplier, and Corporate Express Australia are locked in a court battle over delivery delays which resulted in thousands of WA students starting school without ordered textbooks and stationery.
The soaring price of natural gas has hit West Australian power producers, with generator demand for the fuel falling last year for the first time since the global financial crisis, figures show.
Tap Oil and its partners, including Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund, have approved the $US246 million development of an oilfield in the Gulf of Thailand that should begin production by early 2014.
Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest waved goodbye to a $313 million paper fortune yesterday on a day in which Atlas Iron shares also slumped to fresh two-year lows because of widespread investor fears that iron ore prices were set for big falls.
Australia's biggest supermarket and poker machines owner, Woolworths, has notched up surprisingly strong fourth-quarter sales gains at its Big W apparel chain and the hotels business, with a little help from the federal government's recent cash splash.
Aviva Corp plans to sell its Kenyan gold assets to African Barrick Gold for as much as $30 million, generating what the Perth company has described as a “substantial return” on the original investment.
Tony Sage says he is very confident Cape Lambert Resources will get its hands on the $80 million it claims to be owed by Metallurgical Corporation of China before arbitration, despite further bickering in court yesterday.
Indonesia's reputation as a business destination is under scrutiny after Intrepid Mines was kicked off its Tujuh Bukit gold-silver-copper project in East Java.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: Financial market regulators are likely to end the Australian Securities Exchange's monopoly over the clearing of securities trades, a decision that would allow foreign competitors to undercut the stock exchange on price and trigger a big shake-up in the broking industry.
Tony Abbott has indicated his support for Chinese investment in agriculture in northern Australia and expressed his embarrassment over the White Australia Policy, in his first visit to Beijing as Opposition Leader.
US private equity giant TPG has lobbed a second takeover bid for Billabong International, valued at about $695 million.
Page 3: Labor powerbroker Bill Shorten has hosed down speculation that Prime Minister Julia Gillard's position is under threat, saying he had not spoken with Kevin Rudd about the leadership.
Page 5: Both major parties are set to put the Greens last or close to last on their ballot papers the next federal election.
Page 6: BHP Billiton is reviewing the number of contractors and staff across its mining mega-projects for potential cuts, the latest sign that it is unlikely to approve the expansion of its Olympic Dam copper-uranium mine in South Australia this year.
The Gillard government has insisted it will meet its budget target, despite growing concerns that falling commodity prices will make it impossible to deliver the politically essential $1.5 billion surplus this year.
Page 9: A two-week strike has ended at a national Coles distribution centre in Victoria after workers accepted a revised management offer on pay and conditions.
Page 13: Record investment in new stores combined with price cuts, promotions and government handouts have helped Woolworths deliver its best quarterly sales growth for 12 months, auguring well for a solid start to 2013.
Embattled mobile carrier Vodafone Hutchison Australia has warned it may not participate in critical spectrum auctions expected to raise up to $4 billion for the federal government after losing a further 178,000 subscribers.
Page 17: A major Fairfax Media institutional shareholder has expressed sympathy for mining billionaire Gina Rinehart's reluctance to agree to the media company's editorial independence charter.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Julia Gillard has cleared the way for a compromise with media executives over government intervention in the press, as some of her senior allies argue against proposals to impose curbs on news coverage.
Labor's attempt to decouple itself from the Greens and its continuing shower of cash handouts to middle Australia have failed to lift its popularity, with the latest Newspoll putting the Gillard government’s primary vote at 28 per cent — two percentage points off its record low.
Page 2: Share prices have slumped and financial markets have begun betting that the Reserve Bank will be forced to cut rates again in two weeks in response to renewed fears about the solvency of Greece and Spain.
Key states are demanding the federal government commit hundreds of millions of dollars more to fund the National Disability Insurance Scheme at this week’s Council of Australian Governments meeting before they reach agreement on trials of the scheme due to begin in July next year.
Page 4: One of Julia Gillard’s keenest supporters has declared Labor will commit electoral suicide if it switches leaders, arguing a change would force a general election that the government would lose in a landslide.
In his first visit to China as Opposition Leader, Tony Abbott will today again defy the convention that politicians do not criticise their domestic adversaries overseas by lambasting the carbon and mining taxes that have drawn strong criticism from Chinese corporations.
Public support for the government’s carbon pricing laws remained up for grabs at the time it came into operation, with new research showing the hostility to the scheme fell once the associated compensation package was explained to voters. Page 5: Southern Australia’s manufacturing sector faces another hit, with a global giant investigating shutting its joint aircraft maintenance facility in Melbourne and threatening up to 200 jobs.
Page 9: The International Monetary Fund is ready to pull the plug on Greece, forcing a bankruptcy as early as September, as the country’s new Prime Minister said it is suffering a ‘‘Great Depression’’.
Business: Retail giant Woolworths has reported a rebound in food and liquor sales for the fourth quarter but is expected to be beaten by smaller rival Coles later this week on the crucial measure of sales growth from existing stores.
AMP is planning a major cost cutting campaign that will strip nearly $25 million a year out of its funds management business as it battles ongoing turbulent market conditions and poor investment flows.
Intrepid Mines has been elbowed out of its flagship project in Indonesia by local business interests operating in the shadows, sending shares in the formerly high-flying company crashing and prompting it to warn that Indonesia’s reputation as a mining investment destination was being damaged.
Beleaguered Leighton Holdings is relying on the mining boom for a much-needed boost, with its subsidiary Theiss winning a $2.3 billion contract to extend mining operations at Jellinbah Group’s Lake Vermont coalmine in Queensland’s resource-rich Bowen Basin.
Economic uncertainty and market volatility have kept merger and acquisition volumes in the mining sector in check so far this year, although there remains scope for less-speculative activity across the rest of the year.
Goldminer St Barbara is to introduce super-haulage trucks and increase underground office space to improve traffic flows in the decline at its Gwalia underground mine near Leonora in Western Australia.
Vodafone has contributed to another horror result for Hutchison Telecoms Australia as it reported a $131.3 million loss for the first half of the year, up 68 per cent.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: Former Health Services Union boss Michael Williamson and his family reaped millions of dollars of money over 15 years, a report has found.
Page 2: Voters have more doubts about Tony Abbott's "direct action" policies on climate change than the Gillard government's carbon tax, a poll shows.
Page 3: Women's household incomes suffer more from a divorce.
World: US President Barack Obama visited the key battleground state of Colorado but not to talk politics in the wake of a shooting tragedy.
Business: Retail giant Woolworths has notched up strong fourth-quarter sales gains at its Big W apparel chain.
Sport: Greg Inglis's fighting of a grade-four dangerous tackle charge is pitting South Sydney against St George Illawarra.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: The 70,000 NSW residents who joined the Telegraph's One Big Switch campaign will receive a 16.5 per cent discount.
Page 2: Flights to transfer asylum seekers are costing $180,000 each.
Page 3: Thefts from NSW hospitals have risen by 10 per cent.
World: The mother of a Bali nine ringleader Myuran Sukumaran has asked the Indonesian president to spare his life.
Business: Retail giant Woolworths expects to shed the unprofitable Dick Smith electronics chain within weeks.
Sport: South Sydney and St George Illawarra engage in a war over Greg Inglis's shoulder charge.
THE AGE:
Page 1: Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson may have to appear before a junior tribunal after swearing at an umpire while acting as a runner in his son's under-9 game. Two clans in running battle outside Alice Springs court where Melbourne AFL star Liam Jurrah faces assault charges. Sri Lankan asylum seekers sent back from Australia say they have been persecuted at home.
Page 2: Temby report says union boss Michael Williamson, his family and friends reaped a fortune from the Health Services Union during his 15-year reign. Coles warehouse blockade ends as striking workers accept new pay deal. Chinese research shows that greenhouse gas cuts promised by developed countries will not be enough to stop the world's temperatures from rising by two degrees.
Page 3: Report says a Doncaster railway line could be built for $840 million and paid for using taxes raised from the higher property values it would generate. Women are poorer and men are lonelier after divorce, says new study. Man tells court he was unaware of hidden cocaine in his moonboot after arriving from US. Opera-going public come second best as sponsors and donors snap up tickets to Opera Australia's Ring cycle. Refurbished Hamer Hall to host two all-night electronic music parties.
World: Suspect in the Colorado cinema massacre to appear in court.
Business: Woolies notch strong fourth-quarter sales gains with a little help from the Canberra cash splash.
Sport: Contract talks with centre half-back Ben Reid take back seat as Collingwood impasse with Travis Cloke continues.
THE HERALD SUN:
Page 1: Gold medal hope Blair Evans gets her first taste of London's Olympic pool. Police flying squads to tackle violent crime head-on.
Page 2: Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson apologises for lashing out at an umpire in charge of his son's under-9 game. Hawthorn defender Jarrad Boumann hurt in early morning fight in the city.
Page 3: Melbourne Airport to crack down on smokers who are ignoring the no smoking signs and forcing travellers to walk through a haze of second hand smoke. Bill Shorten has not discussed the Labor leadership with Kevin Rudd.
World: Arab nations tell Syrian President Bashar al-Assad it's time to get out.
Business: Woolies says it's close to selling its unprofitable Dick Smith electronics chain.
Sport: Collingwood captain Nick Maxwell defends embattled forward Travis Cloke and dismisses talk that he should be dropped.