Productivity gap 'holding back growth – The Aus; Swans song: Born in the ALP – The Fin; BHP hit by job loss talk – The West; Gina lines up China sales for Roy Hill – The Aus; Childcare crisis – The West
Productivity gap 'holding back growth
Australia has been ranked second worst of 51 countries for productivity growth, according to a global survey that places the nation’s economic performance behind 33 countries, including New Zealand and Colombia. The Aus
Swans song: Born in the ALP
Acting Prime Minister Wayne Swan will ramp up his verbal attacks on Clive Palmer, Gina Rinehart and Andrew Forrest today by accusing them of using their wealth to treat the courts, Parliament, and the media as their personal playthings. The Fin
BHP hit by job loss talk
Perth's contracting sector was awash with speculation last night that BHP Billiton was poised to cut jobs on its Pilbara iron ore expansion projects, including the doomed Port Hedland outer harbour development. The West
Gina lines up China sales for Roy Hill
Gina Rinehart has moved to reassure nervous financiers hedging on committing to a massive debt package on the $9 billion Roy Hill iron ore project, signing its first sales contract with a Chinese steelmaker. The Aus
Childcare crisis
WA's childcare sector is at breaking point, with critical shortages forcing parents to cut back their work hours or try to hire nannies. The West
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: WA's childcare sector is at breaking point, with critical shortages forcing parents to cut back their work hours or try to hire nannies.
Page 4: One of Australia's most powerful unions wants a national rollout of WA's gas reservation policy, saying without it the country will be trading away its comparative energy advantage.
Page 12: Perth's outer suburbs are delivering a slice of the state's mining boom to tens of thousands of new West Australians.
Page 16: A Perth inventor has developed a mooring system that he claims will be one of the biggest breakthroughs in boating convenience in years.
Business liftout:
Page 1: Perth's contracting sector was awash with speculation last night that BHP Billiton was poised to cut jobs on its Pilbara iron ore expansion projects, including the doomed Port Hedland outer harbour development.
The internecine shareholder feuding at Empire Oil and Gas is about to spill out into the open with the launch of a recall motion targeting the company's board.
Page 3: Navitas has urged the federal government to better promote Australia's new streamlined visa system for higher education students as it looks to bounce back from its worst year on record.
Senior executives from Indian power giant Lanco Infratech have staged a lightning visit to their coal operations in Collie, triggering speculation about a resolution of the troubled $1.2 billion sale of Bluewaters to Japanese interests.
Page 4: Apache Energy has made a desperate last-minute bid to suppress details of its lucrative gas contract with Norwegian fertiliser giant Yara International, as part of new court action launched by former tycoon Pankaj Oswal.
Gina Rinehart's Roy Hill Holdings has made its first official foray into long term contracts in the Chinese iron ore market, signing an off-take deal with Shougang International for product from the Pilbara mine.
Page 5: Goldfields miner Focus Minerals says it can turn the corner on its high cash cost levels, which forced it to report negative operating cash flows despite record gold production during the June quarter.
The housing slump has led property investor the Aspen Group to warn the market of a $95 million impairment to its balance sheet.
Page 22: Property researcher BIS Shrapnel is forecasting prime CBD office towers in Perth to rise in value by 75 per cent and for rents to climb 50 per cent by 2-16, when there is likely to be a sharp fall in prices and rents either driven by an investment collapse or as the city confronts and oversupply of office space.
Page 24: CBD real estate specialists expect few surprises when the Property Council of Australia releases its Perth Office Market Report tomorrow but say big tenants will be forced to use pre-commitment leasing deals if they want to secure office space.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: Acting Prime Minister Wayne Swan will ramp up his verbal attacks on Clive Palmer, Gina Rinehart and Andrew Forrest today by accusing them of using their wealth to treat the courts, Parliament, and the media as their personal playthings.
One of Europe's largest and most successful banks has scaled down its Australian operations, adding weight to comments from HSBC that European banks are withdrawing from Australia.
The gold price could surge to $US3000 an ounce as the United States prints money to try to stimulate jobs growth, one of Australia's most successful financial entrepreneurs predicts.
Australia is lagging behind in workplace performance and flexibility for employers, according to a global survey that highlights competitiveness problems for businesses in a high-cost, low-productivity nation.
Page 3: The Reserve Bank of Australia's 0.75 of a percentage point worth of recent rate cuts look to have helped cauterise what were worrying declines in home values over April and May.
A former employee of Hanlong Mining Investment has pleaded guilty to insider trading gains of more than $1.35 million and court documents show a history of unlawful trading.
Page 5: Solar and wind power are predicted to be competitive with coal-fired generators with or without a carbon price by the end of the decade.
NBN Co chief executive Mike Quigley has played down suggestions of a cost blowout in the $36 billion national broadband network.
Page 7: The leaders of some of Australia's largest grain companies have accused the federal opposition of fostering “paranoia” and “fearmongering” in the debate over Chinese investment in Australian land.
Page 8: The head of Australia's biggest business lender, National Australia Bank, has urged the productivity debate to broaden beyond calls for winding back Labor's Fair Work Act.
Page :13 South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill has flagged a reprieve on the deadline for BHP Billiton's $US20 billion-plus Olympic Dam expansion, saying he would “entertain” any application to delay approval.
Page 15: Telstra has hit back at claims that its dominant position in retail telecommunications is stifling competition, accusing No.3 mobile carrier Vodafone of seeking protection.
Page 17: A flood of appeals against the West Australian Environmental Protection Authority's recommended approval of Woodside Petroleum's Browse liquefied natural gas project has increased doubts that the venture will get the go-ahead in the June half of 2013.
Page 38: The management of Perth-based property trust Aspen Group looks likely to face another attack from a group of disgruntled investors barely 18 months after managing director Gavin Hawkins faced down an attempted coup on the board.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Australia has been ranked second worst of 51 countries for productivity growth, according to a global survey that places the nation’s economic performance behind 33 countries, including New Zealand and Colombia.
Long-running talks aimed at sealing a free-trade agreement between Australia and China have become bogged down amid a Chinese push for a relaxation of Australian regulations on foreign investment.
Page 3: Delays to the $36 billion National Broadband Network have forced a deep cut to its construction targets in a new business plan that shows the project will reach less than a quarter of the homes first promised by the time of the next election.
Page 4: Wholesale electricity prices will have to rise by as much as 30 per cent over the rest of the decade to justify building new generation capacity.
The persistent high-pressure systems that dominated Perth’s weather over the past month have made July the driest ever and set records for the most cold nights, the lowest mean minimum temperature and the sunniest July since 1918.
Page 5: A former vice-president of Chinese miner Hanlong worked with three senior executives in an insider trading syndicate, which among other things made a fake bid for an Australian uranium company to ramp up its shares only to dump the stock the day the takeover was announced.
Page 6: Labor's plan to rebuild the manufacturing sector has been thrown in doubt as the Gillard government delays a $250 million promise to boost new research, sparking fears funding will be cut.
The turf war between retail and industry super funds looks primed to escalate with the release of data showing fees charged by unionbacked industry funds were up to 43 per cent higher than those of their peers.
Lower interest rates and rising rents are luring investors back into the property market, giving Australia’s gloomy builders some cause for optimism.
Business: Gina Rinehart has moved to reassure nervous financiers hedging on committing to a massive debt package on the $9 billion Roy Hill iron ore project, signing its first sales contract with a Chinese steelmaker.
Rare-earths miner Lynas has warned that macroeconomic conditions in China remain relatively subdued and the price for rare earths has significantly fallen compared with the same period last year.
Fairfax Media chairman Roger Corbett has dampened speculation the company will sell its radio assets and defended the performance of the board following criticism from its biggest shareholder Gina Rinehart, as the share price plummeted to a record intraday low.
China's view on Hanlong Group’s $1.7 billion bid for Australian-listed Sundance Resources is expected to be revealed today, with the market nervous the deal could be foiled by the economic powerhouse.
Rio Tinto is cutting some jobs at its regional headquarters in Melbourne and will close an office in Sydney, as the Anglo-Australian mining giant moves to contain costs amid falling prices for key commodities such as iron ore.
Cameron Clyne has echoed Wayne Swan’s call for a broader productivity debate, saying more industrial relations reform will not by itself deliver the hoped for improvement.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: The contrasting emotions of Aussie swimmers at the London Games shows that competing at this Olympics is all about expectations. The Lucky Gattellari case shows it's not easy finding a reliable hitman. Treasurer Wayne Swan is due to step up attacks on Clive Palmer, Andrew Forrest and Gina Rinehart. Sydney households are paying more than $1100 a year just for the upkeep of the state's poles and wires.
Page 2: Andy Muirhead, the former host of ABC TV's Collectors program, sat with his head up through most of court during the child pornography case against him. Seven people have been arrested in a record $500 million drug swoop in Sydney.
Page 3: More than half the state's public school teachers may become subject to the same rigorous testing used to assess new teachers. Security staff at the Mean Fiddler hotel have denied one of them "king hit" a patron, leaving him with serious head injuries. The man charged with murdering his family in their unit at St Johns Park was reportedly "very close" to his brother.
World: Three members of the anti-Putin band Pussy Riot have defended their "punk prayer" cathedral performance. A series of gaffes have left US presidential candidate Mitt Romney on the back foot.
Business: A former executive of Hanlong Mining has admitted being a serial insider trader.
Sport: Boxer Damien Hooper has flagged his intention to win in London.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: James Magnussen has rebounded from "the worst day" of his life, declaring he's back on target for Olympic glory.
Page 2: The navy rescued 69 asylum seekers on a stricken boat just 110km south of Indonesia on Tuesday after a passenger rang Australian authorities saying the boat was in trouble. A letter from a cardiologist to regional airline Rex has been met with an "offensive and arrogant" reply. A former top immigration official says Australia must close the door on boat people.
Page 3: It's been revealed that Paul Douglas Peters wore a terrifying "rainbow smile" ski mask when he confronted Sydney schoolgirl Madeleine Pulver in her home. An Australian nurse is facing the death penalty in Malaysia on drug charges.
World: The Batman killer has been charged with 24 counts of murder and 116 counts of attempted murder over the shooting rampage at a Colorado cinema complex.
Sport: The world is still trying to figure out how Chinese swimmer Ye Shiwen can swim faster than the world's best male swimmers.
THE AGE:
Page 1: China's swimming prodigy Ye Shiwen sparks an international doping drama over whether her gold medal performance was credible. Silver medallist Emily Seebohm wipes away the tears after being pipped by American Missy Franklin. Melbourne's poorest are the biggest losers on poker machines. Wayne Swan attacks billionaires Clive Palmer, Gina Rinehart and Andrew Forrest in John Button lecture.
Page 3: Melbourne cancer specialist says the management of prostate cancer in Australia has been hijacked by people with commercial interests. International and local architects enter the Flinders Street Station design competition, which carries a million dollar prize pool. Pets Paradise chain close to collapse after its bank seized control and appointed corporate undertakers. Melbourne nurse Emma Louise L'Aiguille who is facing the death sentence over Malaysian drug trafficking charges weeps in court.
World: Syria's most senior diplomat in the UK defects because he can no longer represent a regime that is killing its people.
Business: Serial insider trader Calvin Zhu pleads guilty to three charges of prohibited conduct, which reaped him more than $371,000.
Sport: Former Melbourne ruckman Paul Johnson backs up Brock McLean's claims of tanking in 2009, by saying player development, rather than winning, was the priority.
THE HERALD SUN:
Page 1: Dozens of towns are still at fire risk three years after Black Saturday because they have no fireproof refuges, says new report. Emily Seebohm will fight on after letting a gold medal slip from her grasp.
Page 2: ANZ Bank's best staff lined up for luxury overseas trip despite the bank having the lowest level of customer satisfaction of all the majors. Bob Hawke dismisses talk of Labor annihilation at the next election as "overly pessimistic". Jet used to fly high rollers to Crown casino in near miss with a Virgin plane last October.
Page 3: Friendship forged between orphaned baby kangaroo and baby wombat. Melbourne nurse facing death penalty for drug trafficking says she did not know the stash was in the car she was driving.
World: Iran warn against any Western move to help insurgents in the civil war raging in Syria.
Business: NAB boss Cameron Clyne tells business leaders to stop talking down the economy and instead look for new opportunities to create jobs and wealth.
Sport: Brock McLean's tanking claims in his 2009 season at Melbourne could spread as AFL's integrity officer gets involved.
