Staff Reporters

SMALL business operators’ understanding of the GST has improved substantially in the past six months, according to the Small Business Development Commission’s May 2000 Small Business Opinion Survey.

THE Government’s proposed provisions for superannuation funds will undermine the superannuation system, according to the Institute for Chartered Accountants in Australia.

WA-based Quick Sign plans to open new franchises in West Perth and Joondalup by the end of the year.

THE ADVERTISING fraternity must learn to adapt to the new digital environment, according to Murdoch University chair of marketing and media program Duane Varan.

ANOTHER olive oil project is off the ground, this time north of Perth near Gingin.

Talon Resources NL’s subsidiary Supersorb Minerals is set to launch a new range of high-performance products for the horticultural industry after signing an agreement to secure a supply of zeolite.

The boom in flexible staffing is currently growing at 20 per cent, according to a recent survey by recruitment company Drake.

Despite the volume of GST seminars and information available, many businesses still have unanswered questions.

THE MOST positive thing about the Northbridge Tunnel development is that it’s over, says Snap Printing Northbridge owner Ian Wood.

A PROTEST rally targeting the Premier is planned to disrupt the opening of the Northbridge Tunnel on 22 April.

THE Reserve Bank is applying a heavy-handed approach to the economy, warned CPA Australia after the recent announcement of a further 0.25 percentage point increase in interest rates.

The Property Council of Australia has asked the Office of Energy to review the start date of new wiring standards.

WHILE the mandatory Franchising Code of Conduct has reportedly been successful in cleaning up the franchising industry, not all are happy with it.

Perth-based LionOre Australia (Nickel) Limited has moved a significant step forward in its plan to develop the Emily Ann nickel sulphide project in WA.

WITH the opening of the Graham Farmer Freeway at Easter, I urge anyone who ever travels east-west through Perth to take the time to check out the new route.

CPA Australia considers that the forthcoming congress is an essential event for all those who want to stay on top of what’s happening in accounting, finance and management.

A new voluntary star rating scheme to estimate the greenhouse emissions of buildings has been proposed for WA by the Office of Energy.

PERTH’S top creatives got a kick out of AdShel’s ‘creatives’ campaign last month.

Perth-based hydrocarbon explorer Anzoil NL has developed a joint venture with Success Oil Company to market and apply new technology to enhance oil production, especially on depleted fields.

Bond watch. Hot from the back streets of Cottesloe come reports that our Alan is working on his first property deal since leaving the comforts of Karnet.

WITH the GST fast approaching, the Australian Tax Office has created a checklist to help small businesses meet the required deadlines.

AUSSIE Online Limited has launched the first stage of its national expansion with the opening of a Melbourne office.

A NEW $4.26 million cattle saleyard, soon opening for business in Mt Barker, has been hailed as a major asset to the cattle industry in the South West of WA.

One of the world’s largest gold producers has gained a significant foothold in the Tanami-Arunta province, near the border between WA and the Northern Territory.

What is it that makes a restaurant popular? Importantly, what is it that makes one man’s cuisine another man’s dyspepsia?

DEMAND for fast food alternatives continues to increase and gourmet pie shops are taking a big slice of the market.

WHILE attention has been focused on the Northbridge Tunnel’s effect on Northbridge property prices, suburbs into which the Graham Farmer Freeway spills are also benefiting.

Australians in their 30s, 40s and 50s were educated and trained for their workplace responsibilities before the digital era. Millions of us are now coming to grips with the challenges of becoming Internet savvy.

Illegal grabbing of farms and natural resources in Zimbabwe has been emulated in Indonesia where peasants are poaching gold from at least one Australian mining company.

ALMOST $1 million has been provided by the WA Government to support ten training sector and industry projects in WA.

GIVEN the sobering statistics of small business failure in the 1990s, thorough research and planning are critical to the success of franchise operations, says Entrepreneur Business Centre owner Greg Hart.

PLANS for a $35 million redevelopment above the Graham Farmer Freeway tunnel in Northbridge have been released.