Healthy businesses face JobKeeper axe
Businesses whose turnovers recover sooner than expected could lose their JobKeeper wage supplements before the scheme expires, under changes that will be looked at by Treasury. The Fin
Tighter test for foreign investors
Foreign investors will face greater scrutiny when bidding for sensitive assets, and the Treasurer will be given new powers, including the right to forcibly divest a previously approved purchase, under an overhaul of the foreign investment regime designed to safeguard national security. The Fin
Validity of FMG’s self-test queried
The WA Department of Health has revealed it hasn’t endorsed a mandatory, self-administered coronavirus testing regime rolled out by Fortescue Metals Group for its fly-in, fly-out staff. The West
Banks reap $33m in crisis fee bonanza
UBS, ANZ and Commonwealth Bank are big winners from the government’s COVID-19 bond issue spree, each taking in millions in syndication fees during the first half of the year. The Fin
Pick-up, but millions still out of a job
The jobless rate in Australia has started to fall with the relaxing of COVID-19 restrictions but more than two million people are out of work, according to new employment estimates. The West
Call for ‘cyber army’ to fend off attacks
Australia will need to train more than 17,000 additional cyber security workers over the next five years to protect companies from “devastating” attacks and the malicious targeting of critical infrastructure systems. The Aus
Half of virus job losses ‘to be back by end of year’
Half of people who lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 shutdown were working in sectors that will experience a fast recovery and 18 per cent are set for a slow return, according to the Boston Consulting Group. The Fin
Mix-up fails to derail Lynas’ Pentagon bid
Australia’s ambassador to the United States remains hopeful ASX-listed Lynas Corporation can win US military funding for a rare earths processing plant in Texas despite recent setbacks. The Fin
Harris Scarfe to feel the love from Spotlight
Homewares and outdoor retailer Spotlight Group wants to double sales at Harris Scarfe after buying the collapsed department store chain for about $50 million and has reassured nervous suppliers it has a sustainable future. The Fin
‘Sins of omission’ sting Westpac
A top-level investigation into catastrophic failures in Westpac’s anti-money laundering framework has blamed “sins of omission and not of commission”, citing lack of accountability, deficient processes, poor individual judgments and a crowded board risk agenda. The Aus
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Foreign investors will face greater scrutiny when bidding for sensitive assets, and the Treasurer will be given new powers, including the right to forcibly divest a previously approved purchase, under an overhaul of the foreign investment regime designed to safeguard national security.
Australians horrified by violent images out of the US should see them as democracy at work to effect change, Arthur Sinodinos, Canberra’s top Washington envoy, has urged.
Page 2: UBS, ANZ and Commonwealth Bank are big winners from the government’s COVID-19 bond issue spree, each taking in millions in syndication fees during the first half of the year.
Page 3: Australia’s $3 trillion superannuation industry took a $208 billion hit during the COVID-19 crisis of the March quarter, official figures reveal.
Page 4: Businesses whose turnovers recover sooner than expected could lose their JobKeeper wage supplements before the scheme expires, under changes that will be looked at by Treasury.
Page 5: Half of people who lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 shutdown were working in sectors that will experience a fast recovery and 18 per cent are set for a slow return, according to the Boston Consulting Group.
Page 6: The federal government’s Home-Builder scheme could bring in 10 per cent more work for bigger builders, but industry experts say it misses the mark.
Page 7: Australia and India have elevated their bilateral relationship to the level of comprehensive strategic partnership, deepening ties in business, defence and cyber security, as they increasingly find common cause in strained relations with China.
Page 8: The federal government has spent at least $2 billion in six years on outside contractors as departments and agencies use temporary hires to skirt caps on the number of permanent public servants, the Auditor-General has found.
Former Fortescue Metals boss Nev Power has distanced himself from plans to dramatically increase public spending on gas infrastructure, saying a leaked document does not represent the view of the government’s COVID-19 commission.
Page 11: Award conditions and minimum wages are among the barriers to hiring new apprentices, according to the Productivity Commission.
Page 14: Australia’s ambassador to the United States remains hopeful ASX-listed Lynas Corporation can win US military funding for a rare earths processing plant in Texas despite recent setbacks.
Page 17: Westpac chairman John McFarlane has declared the bank won’t be bullied into settling a Federal Court action with AUSTRAC for an unreasonable amount, after an independent report found there had been a ‘‘noticeable shift’’ in the bank’s response to financial crime from 2017 onwards.
Homewares and outdoor retailer Spotlight Group wants to double sales at Harris Scarfe after buying the collapsed department store chain for about $50 million and has reassured nervous suppliers it has a sustainable future.
Page 18: ASX-listed construction giant CIMIC is planning a one-two staged exit of the world’s biggest mining services business, Thiess.
Page 23: NAB has been forced to kick in another $80 million into its MLC Life business, just months after tipping $60 million into the life insurance business, which is struggling amid sector-wide losses.
The Australian
Page 1: The nation’s most prestigious universities have binged on debt in the lead-up to the coronavirus crisis, almost doubling their level of borrowings in the past five years to $2.8bn in a building spree to cater for international students and replace ageing infrastructure.
Page 2: Australia will need to train more than 17,000 additional cyber security workers over the next five years to protect companies from “devastating” attacks and the malicious targeting of critical infrastructure systems.
Page 4: Retailers suffered their worst month of sales in history in April, according to data released one day after national accounts figures showed the COVID-19 crisis had thrown the nation into its first recession in close to three decades.
Page 5: The Productivity Commission is calling for a radical overhaul of the vocational education sector to boost its performance, reduce waste, be fairer to students and position it to play a key role in Australia’s recovery from the COVID-19 recession.
Page 15: A top-level investigation into catastrophic failures in Westpac’s anti-money laundering framework has blamed “sins of omission and not of commission”, citing lack of accountability, deficient processes, poor individual judgments and a crowded board risk agenda.
The West Australian
Page 1: Prestigious private college Guildford Grammar says primary school children have gained up to 25 minutes extra learning time each day partly because parents have been barred from classrooms under COVID-19 restrictions.
Page 5: The Federal Government’s HomeBuilder grants have received a mixed response, drawing both praise over the anticipated jobs boost and criticism that it will encourage a two-speed economy.
Page 7: WA’s top university has bucked a trend that has seen other prestigious institutions nationwide binge on debt in the lead-up to the COVID-19 crisis.
Page 8: Indigenous communities could get access to cheaper and more secure electricity, as the Government today injects almost $20 million into creating local off-grid energy supplies.
Business: The jobless rate in Australia has started to fall with the relaxing of COVID-19 restrictions but more than two million people are out of work, according to new employment estimates.
West Australians spent $545 million less in April compared with March, when WA panic-buyers smashed retail spending records, according to data released yesterday by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
The WA Department of Health has revealed it hasn’t endorsed a mandatory, self-administered coronavirus testing regime rolled out by Fortescue Metals Group for its fly-in, fly-out staff.
Construction has started on a submarine rescue facility in Henderson which will act as a base for Australian and international rescue missions.
Veteran fund managers are warning big parts of share and bond markets are becoming way too expensive as punters with trillions of dollars seek healthy returns in a COVID-19 world.
While China has slammed the door shut on Australian barley by imposing hefty tariffs, India is cutting imposts on pulse grains, potentially creating new opportunities for WA farmers.
Three years after Elon Musk took up a challenge to solve Australian power outages by building the world’s biggest battery, a Siemens AG venture wants to install even bigger ones to bolster renewable investment in the nation.
Property group Primewest has broadened its interests by taking an 8.3 per cent stake in funds manager Clime Investment Management.