We'll beat euro, China crises: RBA – The Aus; Commission takes tough line on carbon tax – The Fin; Chevron lights wick in MUA fight – The Fin; AMEC says ban sets dangerous precedent – The West; Cottesloe heads to court over beachfront – The West
We'll beat euro, China crises: RBA
The Australian economy could withstand a downturn in China or the break-up of the eurozone, Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens has declared, in a call for greater public confidence in our economic strength. The Aus
Commission takes tough line on carbon tax
The Productivity Commission has warned it will take a hard line on business claims for extra carbon tax compensation, and said it may recommend that aid should be cut if it uncovered industries making windfall gains. The Fin
Chevron lights wick in MUA fight
Chevron has accused some unionised wharfies of taking up to three times longer than necessary to load crucial material for the construction of the $43 billion Gorgon liquefied natural gas project off the Pilbara coast. The Fin
AMEC says ban sets dangerous precedent
The government's surprise decision to formalise a ban on coalmining in Margaret River yesterday sent a shudder through WA mining circles, triggering claims it would scare off investors. The West
Cottesloe heads to court over beachfront
Cottesloe Town Council has launched legal action against the state government in a bid to overturn its plan to “forcibly increase” height limits on the beachfront. The West
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 3: Five Perth taxi drivers have been charged with fraud and at least nine more are under investigation for allegedly rorting tens of thousands of dollars from a scheme that subsidises fares for people with serious disabilities.
Page 6: The Water Corporation could be forced to take its full allocation from the ailing Gnangara groundwater system for the third year as Perth heads towards its driest July on record.
Colin Barnett will today urge his fellow premiers to adopt a new GST formula that could deliver WA up to $1.5 billion more a year.
Page 9: The governor of the Reserve Bank has defended the level of Australia's house prices and says housing affordability is the best it has been in a decade.
Page 11: Australians will have coughed up more than $500 million to take part and enjoy the London Olympics.
Page 12: Cottesloe Town Council has launched legal action against the state government in a bid to overturn its plan to “forcibly increase” height limits on the beachfront.
Page 13: The state government has said a blanket ban on coal mining in Margaret River will not pose a sovereign risk to the state's $107 billion resource industry.
Page 15: The federal government says the latest report on corruption in the Health Services Union shows it was right to call in an administrator and toughen the law for all trade unions.
Page 17: The Gillard government's proposed public interest test for media ownership could be used to punish critics, Seven West Media's new boss has warned.
Business liftout:
Page 1: The government's surprise decision to formalise a ban on coalmining in Margaret River yesterday sent a shudder through WA mining circles, triggering claims it would scare off investors.
Tap Oil has quietly put its stakes in two Carnarvon Basin gas discoveries, Zola and Tallaganda, on the market in the hope of cashing in on soaring interest in LNG developments off the Pilbara coast.
Investors have expressed disappointment with Quickflix's performance by trashing the share price of the DVD rental and online streaming company.
Page 3: The ownership endgame is in sight for embattled surfwear retailer Billabong International, with US private equity firm TPG Capital's $1.45-a-share offer forcing other interested parties to run the numbers over the brand.
Cazaly Resources has once again pushed the envelope over Esperance port allocation, announcing a five-million-tonne-a-year allowance for its Parker Range iron ore project despite the state government cautioning that the deed is not a binding document.
Page 5: Ausdrill has strengthened its position in Africa with its biggest contract win at a Mali gold mine for Resolute Mining.
African Petroleum, the $2.3 billion company run by Frank Timis and Tony Sage, has cashed in on investor interest in oil and gas exploration off Africa by raising $85 million through a share placement.
Page 7: BC Iron offered a rare ray of sunshine in a resources industry battered by falling prices and negative sentiment, with a 19c share price surge after it released bullish quarterly figures.
Page 23: Commerce Minister Simon O'Brien is expanding the state government's office consolidation scheme with a plan to group existing departments in Busselton, Mandurah and Northam into fewer buildings to save money on government office accommodation.
Page 24: New supply of retail space in Brookfield Place and at 140 William Street helped push up the CBD's retail vacancy rate from 9.6 per cent to 10.8 per cent during the first half of the year, according to Jones Lang LaSalle, which has completed a report showing difficult trading conditions persist for retailers.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: Tony Abbott has committed a Coalition government to a tougher approach to control of existing businesses in Australia by Chinese state-owned companies and urged Beijing to pursue political reforms and have greater respect for human rights.
Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens has played down the economy's potential vulnerabilities but provided support for claims that Canberra should have built up bigger budget surpluses as protection against its heavy reliance on China.
Page 3: The Productivity Commission has warned it will take a hard line on business claims for extra carbon tax compensation, and said it may recommend that aid should be cut if it uncovered industries making windfall gains.
Page 4: The West Australian government has blocked all coalmining in the Margaret River region but denies it is creating a sovereign risk issue.
Page 5: State and territory governments may have to spend up to $920 million within a year to improve disability services under a deal to be considered by Prime Minister Julia Gillard and state premiers today.
Page 7: Chevron has accused some unionised wharfies of taking up to three times longer than necessary to load crucial material for the construction of the $43 billion Gorgon liquefied natural gas project off the Pilbara coast.
Page 13: Investor confidence in Marius Kloppers' leadership of BHP Billiton is declining, adding to pressure on the board of Australia's largest company to develop and articulate clear succession options.
Billabong founder and major shareholder Gordon Merchant has indicated he is willing to consider a $695 million takeover proposal from private equity firm TPG worth almost 20 per cent less than the offer he snubbed in February.
Page 15: Virgin Australia's rapid capacity expansion of the past six months would slow over the coming year as the recent spate of new aircraft deliveries begin to tail off, the airline's chief operating officer said yesterday.
Page 17: Alesco has urged shareholders to stick by the company for two more years rather than selling out now to Dulux Group's $200 million bid, saying its turnaround program would boost value by 2014.
Page 18: National Australia Bank has increased interest rates on loans for tens of thousands of business customers.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: The Australian economy could withstand a downturn in China or the break-up of the eurozone, Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens has declared, in a call for greater public confidence in our economic strength.
Julia Gillard will double the amount the commonwealth will commit to a trial of the National Disability Insurance Scheme in NSW, in a last-ditch bid to win agreement from the states for the scheme at today’s meeting of the Council of Australian Governments.
Page 2: Unions have turned on each other in a fight over billions of dollars in retirement savings as officials race to secure cash for their favoured superannuation funds ahead of looming government reforms.
The federal government was yesterday accused of continuing to run a ‘‘protection racket’’ to shield Craig Thomson, after Trade Minister Craig Emerson falsely implied that barrister Ian Temby QC had exonerated the MP over alleged corruption in the Health Services Union’s East branch.
International shipping firm Devine is being prosecuted by the Fair Work Ombudsman over its importation of foreign workers on short-stay visas.
The construction watchdog has accused one of the nation’s biggest builders, Baulderstone, of breaching workplace laws by taking action against a worker who did not want to be a union member, resulting in his losing pay and being confined to menial cleaning duties.
Page 4: The Gillard government is split over plans to develop northern Australia into a new food bowl reliant on Chinese government investment to build irrigation and water infrastructure.
Page 5: Media executives have welcomed the possibility of a compromise with Canberra over stronger regulation of the press that avoids setting up a powerful statutory authority.
Business: The Nine Network is engaged in an eleventh-hour scramble to sell advertising around the London Olympics, as the network’s losses on the world event mount in the face of persistently weak advertising markets.
The board of Alesco will push on with an ambitious capital management strategy to increase dividends as it tries to ward off Dulux’s sweetened bid.
Surfwear, skate and skiwear company Billabong is mulling a renewed takeover bid from US private equity group TPG, despite the offer valuing the company at $150 million less than the bid the board rejected as too low in February.
Several groups of traders are under investigation by regulators around the world for allegedly banding together to rig interest rates, according to sources.
Strong progress at the ExxonMobil-run $US16 billion ($15.5bn) Papua New Guinea liquefied natural gas project is buoying the prospects of minority partner Oil Search.
National Australia Bank has ordered an effective interest rate rise for some of its big business customers, blaming the persistent higher costs of funding and the continuing turbulent global economic conditions.
The nation’s two-speed economy has been blamed for crippling the Australian wine industry and forcing a restructure of two global companies that will result in 175 job losses.
Backlogs caused by a new visa enrolment system have forced education provider Navitas to revise down its student enrolment forecast.
Woolworths supermarket boss Tjeerd Jegen has hosed down speculation that private label products are taking over supermarket shelves, saying the company would be foolish to deny shoppers the brand-name products they demand.
The nation’s two-speed economy has been blamed for crippling the Australian wine industry and forcing a restructure of two global companies that will result in 175 job losses.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: Athletics Australia team coach Eric Hollingsworth says his team is the best yet to contend an Olympic Games and is aiming to win six medals. Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has unveiled an assertive foreign policy challenging the Chinese Communist Party to relax its tight grip on political power. The Labor Party is developing a plan to rebuild itself as it expects to lose significantly in the next federal election. An alleged Canadian spy sold top secret intelligence to Russia.
Page 2: A cross-party meeting of MPs has failed to break the deadlock on asylum seeker policy between the coalition, the Greens and Labor.
Page 3: The Reserve Bank governor says house prices are not unreasonably high and affordability is at its best over the past decade.
World: EU member nations have begun searching ships and aircraft if it is suspected they are being used to mule weapons into Syria and have ramped up sanctions on the war-torn country.
Business: Poorly performing super funds have cost investors $15 billion over the past 15 years, a new report says.
Sport: The Australian Rugby League Commission will ask players wether the shoulder charge tackle should be banned from the game before making a decision.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: The thug who headbutted a 22-year-old nursing student when she tried to help a mate in a pub fight has still not been charged as police deem it a low priority case.
Page 2: Corey Loveridge, the cousin of the man accused of killing Sydney teenager Thomas Kelly, said he wanted to `stab and kill someone tonight' hours before he and a friend murdered a 17-year-old in a random street attack.
Page 3: The rate of childhood obesity has fallen from 25 per cent in 2007 to 23 per cent but the battle against expanding waistlines is far from over.
World: At least 235 people have been injured and 111 are dead after 28 bombing attacks in 19 cities across Iraq.
Sport: Penrith Panthers bad boy Travis Burns was told only days before last round's game against the Roosters to find another club.
THE AGE:
Page 1: Some football parents, especially those of the under-18s, are the worst, says 15-year-old goal umpire Tiffany Farrow. Basil Jurrah tells an Alice Springs court that he doesn't hate his cousin Liam but he regards the family of the AFL footballer as the enemy. An alleged Canadian spy has passed on secrets to Russia in an international espionage case that has rocked ASIO and other Western security agencies. Opposition Leader Tony Abbott challenges the Chinese Communist Party to loosen its iron grip on political power.
Page 2: As the boats keep on arriving, the four new detention centres built in the wake of last year's Christmas Island riots either near or beyond capacity. Attorney-General Nicola Roxon dismisses as nonsense claims that mandatory sentencing laws, where Indonesian fishermen can earn up to $20 a day in Australian jails, act as a drawcard.
Page 3: Victorian business warns the state's economy is deteriorating. Reserve Bank governor says housing affordability is the best it has been in a decade, dismissing talk of a housing bubble. Victims' group welcomes the decision to appoint additional staff to the Victorian inquiry into sexual abuse within institutions such as the Catholic Church.
World: Batman movie killer suspect James Holmes may face death penalty.
Business: IGA operator Metcash believed to be looking at entertainment venues and hotels for a slice of the pokie dollar.
Sport: Richmond says it would consider recruiting Magpie Travis Cloke if his talks with Collingwood broke down beyond repair.
THE HERALD SUN:
Page 1: Young mum in hospital in a catatonic state with a rare illness unaware she gave birth two months ago and it's hoped the newborn will help her recover.
Page 2: Craig Thomson's wife Zoe says she doesn't believe he used prostitutes while boss of HSU. Morale hits rock bottom among some doctors at Royal Children's Hospital who believe management is wasting money.
Page 3: Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson summoned to appear before a junior football league tribunal for swearing at an umpires' adviser. Police say they know the mystery gunmen who killed three underworld figures during Melbourne's gangland war.
World: US President Barack Obama tells Syria's Bashar al-Assad not to use chemical weapons.
Business: RBA governor Glenn Stevens says Australia is well placed to ride out a slowdown in the global economy.
Sport: Talks with Travis Cloke reach a dead-end at Collingwood with the club attaching a performance clause to a five-year offer.
