Global CEOs challenge Labor – The Fin; Logging battle – major forest management plan sets stage for new clash – The West; US bank heavyweight presses Roy Hill case – The West; Stubborn CEOs 'risking billions' – The Aus; Mitsui loses $264m tax deduction case – The Fin
Global CEOs challenge Labor
International companies have warned the Gillard government that they may scale back investment plans in Australia due to carbon pricing, surging labour costs, the high dollar and political uncertainty. The Fin
Logging battle – major forest management plan sets stage for new clash
The state government will today release a new 10-year draft forest management plan, setting the stage for the most significant clash between conservationists and the timber industry since the ban on old-growth logging in 2001. The West
US bank heavyweight presses Roy Hill case
One of the White House's highest ranking banking officials has held talks with Gina Rinehart's Roy Hill Holdings during and eight-day tour of Perth, Sydney and Brisbane. The West
Stubborn CEOs 'risking billions'
The head of Canberra’s business tax review has warned that corporate Australia could lose billions of dollars in tax breaks if it snubs attempts at major reform to cut the company tax rate. The Aus
Mitsui loses $264m tax deduction case
Japanese conglomerate Mitsui & Co has failed to convince three Federal Court judges that it should get a $264 million tax reduction relating to its interest in a petroleum field on the North-West Shelf. The Fin
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: The state government will today release a new 10-year draft forest management plan, setting the stage for the most significant clash between conservationists and the timber industry since the ban on old-growth logging in 2001.
Page 6: Premier Colin Barnett was last night facing the prospect of his pet legislation to reform the Corruption and Crime Commission failing to pass Parliament after a plunge in support from key independents.
Page 7: In a dramatic escalation of the battle for Perth air passengers, Virgin Australia has announced that most flights from Perth to Sydney and Melbourne will be on its new A330 wide-body jets and economy passengers will get free hot meals, drinks and in-flight entertainment.
Page 9: West Australians are snapping up new cars at near-record levels as prices in real terms for a fresh set of wheels fall to the lowest levels in 35 years.
Perth has been ranked the world's ninth most liveable city but needs to lift cultural hotspots and hope for cooler weather.
Page 19: The ANZ Bank is boosting its coffers and punishing customers by charging excessive fees for over-the-limit credit cards, overdrafts and overdrawn accounts, the High Court has been told.
Business liftout:
Page 1: One of the White House's highest ranking banking officials has held talks with Gina Rinehart's Roy Hill Holdings during and eight-day tour of Perth, Sydney and Brisbane.
Perth-based explorer Sabre Resources had its day in the sun yesterday, jumping 260 per cent after announcing a significant copper find in northern Namibia.
Page 3: National Australia Bank has set a sombre tone for the banking sector, posting a flat June-quarter profit as higher funding costs and weak loan growth took their toll.
The investment community appears to have given up hope that BHP Billiton will approve its $20 billion outer harbour project at Port Hedland.
Page 4: Sirius Resources has officially struck while the iron's hot, confirming a $7.6 million capital raising yesterday in an effort to fast-track drilling at its Nova nickel-copper discovery.
Page 5: Decmil Group stands to benefit more from Queensland's resource mega projects after mopping up an accommodation development for less than half of its initial investment.
Fortescue Metals Group has invited the state's juniors to explore its vast Pilbara land holdings after calling for expressions of interest for joint venture partners to search for commodities other than iron ore.
Page 7: The ability of mine workers to strike has been dealt a major blow after the federal court upheld fly-in, fly-out workers should lose onsite accommodation during industrial action.
Page 11: Shareholder ructions at Empire Oil & Gas have finally come to a head after dissident shareholders yesterday lodged a formal requisition to spill the company's board.
Page 20: The biggest deal for two years in Australia's industrial property market will put a big slab of the Woolstores complex in Bibra Lake to a new mining use.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: International companies have warned the Gillard government that they may scale back investment plans in Australia due to carbon pricing, surging labour costs, the high dollar and political uncertainty.
Labor faces a multi billion-dollar blowout of the federal budget if its asylum-seeker reform package fails to stem the flow of boats.
Page 3: The Federal Court has upheld a workplace agreement that requires an employer to promote union membership to potential and current staff.
The Reserve Bank of Australia's actions indirectly put pressure on executives at its note printing business to win lucrative overseas contracts, leading to a culture of bribes, junkets and cover-ups across Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam, prosecutors claim.
Business groups have welcomed changes to the Fair Work Act proposed by independent senator Nick Xenophon to remove penalty rates for small businesses.
Page 7: A panel member from the landmark Henry tax review has criticised the federal government for hand-cuffing a cut in the corporate tax rate to slashing business tax concessions.
The Business Council of Australia has warned against any moves to limit the use of international permits under the carbon price scheme, as the federal government faces a potential budgetary black hole if it makes changes.
Page 8: The stimulus from $2 billion in carbon compensation payouts is showing signs of fading.
Page 10: Japanese conglomerate Mitsui & Co has failed to convince three Federal Court judges that it should get a $264 million tax reduction relating to its interest in a petroleum field on the North-West Shelf.
Page 15: Leading fund managers are calling for greater regulation of high frequency trading which they warn is resulting in market manipulation and insider trading at the expense of retail shareholders.
National Australia Bank has been struck by an increase in bad debts from business customers as retailers and exporters struggle to repay loans amid difficult economic conditions.
Quadrant Private Equity has bailed out furniture retailer Super A-Mart and Barbeques Galore in a deal with owners Ironbridge Capital worth about $500 million.
Page 19: Optus has declared an end to the era of aggressive competition for mobile customers, just weeks before a new model of Apple's wildly popular iPhone is expected to hit shelves.
Page 20: Paul Dalgleish, the chief executive of Perth-based engineering and fabrication firm RCR Tomlinson, has disputed the view that spending in the resources sector has reached a peak.
Page 21: Mining magnate Gina Rinehart's Roy Hill Holdings is in talks with the United States Export-Import Bank over funding for its $9.5 billion iron ore project in the Pilbara.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Global companies are turning their backs on Australia out of frustration over federal Labor policies, with chief executives blaming the government’s approach to carbon tax, industrial relations and tax reform for fostering uncertainty.
Australia is on the way to having a world-class university system after five years of increased investment, says Glyn Davis, vice-chancellor of the country’s top-ranked university.
The media is right to fight the prospect of government regulation raised by the Finkelstein inquiry, says former finance minister and fierce media critic Lindsay Tanner.
Page 2: The operators of the nation’s $10 billion electricity market have backed federal government claims that state-owned power utilities are ‘‘gold-plating’’ their networks and driving customers’ bills higher.
Page 5: Lawyers for Australia’s largest class action have told the High Court over-limit fees charged by ANZ Bank are not a service but a penalty that provides an ‘‘unjust enrichment’’ for the bank.
Melbourne is converging with Sydney as an unaffordable city to buy a home and pay off a mortgage, according to an analysis of census data.
Page 6: The head of Canberra’s business tax review has warned that corporate Australia could lose billions of dollars in tax breaks if it snubs attempts at major reform to cut the company tax rate.
The major part of the resource investment boom is ‘‘locked in’’, and Wayne Swan says it is now contributing to a surge in productivity.
Page 7: Centrelink is imposing vastly longer phone waiting times on the unemployed, people with disabilities and carers and is giving RollsRoyce treatment to those dobbing in alleged welfare cheats and other clients with Medicare and child support queries.
Competition tsar Rod Sims has conceded that the 400,000-plus customers on Optus’s hybrid fibre-coaxial network would pay marginally more following the approval of an $800 million deal to fast-track their migration to the national broadband network.
Business: National Australia Bank has forecast a five-year-long battle to capture Australians’ growing propensity to squirrel away cash on deposit, which is expected to put even more pressure on profit margins as banks around the world gear up to meet global regulatory changes.
Gina Rinehart’s Roy Hill Holdings is in talks with the US Export-Import Bank to help fund the company’s planned $9 billion iron ore mine in Western Australia as the clock ticks towards the project’s financing deadline.
Four more employees of Chinese miner Hanlong Mining could face insider trading charges.
Sundance Resources is expected to update the market today on price negotiations with Hanlong Group, as the Chinese company moves to secure a 21.5 per cent drop in its offer price for the African-focused iron ore miner.
Australia is well placed to help India meet its coal and uranium needs, with its demand for energy expected to increase sixfold by 2030, ANZ Bank chief executive Mike Smith told the Australia India Business Council in Melbourne last night.
Optus, the nation’s No 2 telco, has warned that a serious slowdown in the mobile sector will force telcos to wring more value from their existing customer bases if they are to protect profits.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: At least four top jockeys, professional punters and other racing identities in Australia are being investigated for possible match-fixing. Afghan asylum-seekers in Indonesia warn they won't be deterred from trying to reach Australia by boat by new policy being hammered out in parliament. The "right to silence" for accused criminals in NSW is at risk under proposed legislative changes. Surf-culture cult hit Puberty Blues is back, hitting small screens on Wednesday. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is still hopeful Ecuador will grant him political asylum.
Page 2: A state-owned energy company, Endeavour Energy, has lost a Fair Work Australia bid to be allowed to urine test its employees to unearth drug use.
Page 3: Authorities may recall 25,000 budget-priced cars from Chinese brands Great Wall and Chery to replace asbestos components.
World: Western states are scrambling to retain influence with Syrian opposition groups as the country's civil crisis worsens.
Business: The National Australia Bank has posted flat June quarter profits but predicts the domestic economy will grow by 3.5 per cent over the next two years.
Sport: The Wallabies are taking a bruising as they prepare to challenge the All Blacks for the Bledisloe Cup.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: Asylum-seekers hoping to settle in Australia will live in offshore tent cities while they wait for abandoned detention centres in Nauru and Manus Island to be built. Model Miranda Kerr has helped unveil the David Jones spring-summer lines.
Page 2: Juries will be able to make an "adverse inference" about alleged criminals who choose not to speak with police but produce an alibi or new evidence in court under proposed legislative changes.
Page 3: Schools are on high alert after an outbreak of measles involving 40 cases, concentrated in the Campbelltown area in Sydney's southwest.
World: Syrian rebels have released a video they say shows a fighter jet pilot shot down during a bombing raid.
Business: National Australia Bank has bucked the industry trend, scrapping an earlier call for a September rate cut and instead predicting interest rates will remain on hold for the rest of the year.
Sport: Brett Stewart will stay on at Manly on a four-year deal, declaring he "never wanted to go anywhere else".
THE AGE:
Page 1: The racing corruption scandal has dramatically widened, with at least four top jockeys along with professional punters and other racing identities now under investigation. Asylum seeker processing to start on Nauru and Manus Island within a month, as government faces bitter criticism over its plan to hold refugees for unspecified times before they are resettled. County Court judge launches a scathing attack on mandatory sentencing laws under which a poor, grieving Indonesian was sent to jail for five years yesterday.
Page 2: The federal government fought to stop the public learning the details of how former executives of two Reserve Bank of Australia subsidiaries allegedly conspired to pay millions in bribes to corrupt officials in Asia.
Page 3: A Victorian father who was refused permission to work with children after pleading guilty to leaving his own unattended when they escaped through a locked door as he slept has had his case overturned on appeal. Marketers are weighing up whether the benefits of being on Facebook outweigh the risks. Baillieu government insists fewer Victorians will be caught speeding under sweeping changes to speed limits across the state.
World: As Syrian rebels claimed to have downed a regime fighter jet, the US, Britain and France seek to cultivate more direct links with internal Syrian groups.
Business: National Australia Bank sets a sombre tone for the rest of the banking sector, posting a flat June quarter profit as higher funding costs and weak loan growth take their toll.
Sport: Nathan Buckley's decision to spurn North Melbourne in 2009 sparked a secret push within the club to lure Malcolm Blight out of retirement as coach and have Wayne Carey as his understudy before progressing into the top job.
THE HERALD SUN:
Page 1: Boss of gaming giant Neil Wilson and Peter Rolfe Tatts Group launches scathing attack on the Baillieu Government to justify the company's decision to move its headquarters to Brisbane.
Page 2: Surgeons amputate a truck driver's foot to free him from the wreckage of a country road smash. One in 10 operations is being cancelled at the Royal Children's Hospital, with the Baillieu Government promising to pour in more money to speed up things. Hotel Windsor's redevelopment has been thrown a lifeline, saving 230 jobs.
Page 3: Miranda Kerr steals the show in a stunning, one-shouldered red gown by Alex Perry for a David Jones Spring/Summer fashion show last night. Motorists will be forced to slow down as more 40km/h speed zones are introduced across Victoria.
World: Syrian rebels claim they have downed a fighter jet in what would be a major coup for the opposition, but the regime has seized the upper hand in Aleppo.
Business: The battle for deposits will dominate Australia's banking agenda for years as major lenders cut their reliance on offshore funding, National Australia Bank says.
Sport: Nick Riewoldt's bold bid to play against Geelong on Friday took a positive step yesterday when he began light training
THE CANBERRA TIMES:
Page 1: Australian soldiers could be on Nauru and Papua New Guinea's Manus Island as early as Friday to prepare for asylum seekers.
Page 2: ACT politicians could be required to make sworn promises to uphold their code of conduct.
Page 3: Liberal Senator Mary Jo Fisher farewells parliamentary colleagues.
World: Mutant butterflies found near Fukushima. (Tokyo)
Business: Fairfax Media shares surge nearly 2.0 per cent.
Sport: Pakistan drops seasoned batsman Younis Khan from a 16- man match squad for three one-day match series against Australia. (Cricket)
