Millions roll in as banks drag their heels on rates
Banks are squeezing mortgage customers, with lenders holding back some of the Reserve Bank’s latest rate cut and others taking up to four weeks to pass on the savings. The Aus
Liberal poll finds new seat of Burt is 50-50
Internal polling by the Liberal Party has picked up a sizeable 6 per cent swing against the Government in a key WA battleground – Burt. The West
Former RBA chief attacks rates policy
Former Reserve Bank of Australia governor Bernie Fraser criticised last week’s surprise official interest rate cut and warned that more monetary policy stimulus won’t be able to boost growth or reinvigorate inflation. The Fin
ASX moves to block risky listings
Early-stage tech companies with limited revenue could soon be blocked from listing on the Australian Securities Exchange to raise money, under admissions laws being considered by the ASX and the corporate regulator. The Fin
Land deal a hard slog for Forrest
Billionaire Andrew Forrest is still trying to finalise the $7 million purchase of a pastoral station in Western Australia nine months after it was announced as part of a deal that would make him one of the state’s biggest cattle barons. The Aus
Fresh doubts over Muja fate
Perth Energy, the junior electricity provider used by the WA Government as a poster child for the Muja AB power station, says it “does not care” if the State decides to shut the much-maligned coal-fired generator. The West
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Former Reserve Bank of Australia governor Bernie Fraser criticised last week’s surprise official interest rate cut and warned that more monetary policy stimulus won’t be able to boost growth or reinvigorate inflation.
A federal Labor government would release a mini-budget within three months to calm concerns among the ratings agencies that Australia is not doing enough to preserve its AAA credit rating.
Flagging real estate markets are under pressure from banks cutting off credit to foreign borrowers and warnings from a top property executive that a Labor government’s crackdown on negative gearing could trigger an economic downturn.
Page 11: QBE Insurance Group’s North America division was once its biggest problem child. But three years of hard work and painful remediation efforts have morphed the $US5 billion ($6.8 billion) arm into a growth opportunity.
The boss of the world’s biggest explosives maker, Orica, says it is impossible to say when a ‘‘deteriorating’’ mining industry will start to improve after the company’s half-year profit tumbled 33 per cent and it halved its interim dividend.
Page 13: Crown Resorts director Helen Coonan says the gaming giant remains committed to its stake in Melco Crown Entertainment despite its unexpected move to offload a $1 billion parcel of shares in the Macau-focused casino operator.
Page 15: Making strides in gender equality Retail giant Woolworths may be struggling to revive sales growth at its supermarket and department stores, and grappling with its underperforming hardware business, but there is one element in which it is rising up the ranks.
Page 19: Early-stage tech companies with limited revenue could soon be blocked from listing on the Australian Securities Exchange to raise money, under admissions laws being considered by the ASX and the corporate regulator.
Page 20: Optus has insisted that its technology and broadband infrastructure will be robust enough to handle the demands of live streaming multiple English Premier League football matches at once next season, despite experts, including NBN chief executive Bill Morrow, saying existing infrastructure is not up to the task.
The Australian
Page 2: Banks are squeezing mortgage customers, with lenders holding back some of the Reserve Bank’s latest rate cut and others taking up to four weeks to pass on the savings.
Billionaire Andrew Forrest is still trying to finalise the $7 million purchase of a pastoral station in Western Australia nine months after it was announced as part of a deal that would make him one of the state’s biggest cattle barons.
Page 7: The Reserve Bank has handed Labor ammunition to defend its negative gearing curbs with the release of a document declaring that any restriction on the tax break could strengthen Australia’s financial stability.
There are early signs that the Turnbull government’s new cashless welfare card is benefiting indigenous communities near the trial town of Ceduna in far-west South Australia.
Page 19: The RBA has posted a spike in bad debt charges to $427m for the March quarter, up 67 per cent on last year cash profit, which rose a less-than expected 4.5 per cent to $2.3bn in a quarter that analysts labelled “soft”.
Page 21: Dairy farmers milked for all they’re worth Mark Billing wants salaried city workers to imagine walking in the shoes — or muddied boots — of Australia’s dairy farmers.
Page 23: Fairfax Media has pushed ahead with deep job cuts across its flagship newspaper mastheads, with up to 30 journalists believed to have been forced to take a redundancy yesterday.
The West Australian
The Reserve Bank fears negative gearing and the capital gains tax system pose a risk to the nation’s financial system and force up house prices, undermining a key attack line by Malcolm Turnbull on Labor.
A school bus driver who allegedly failed a drug test after dropping children off in Western Australia says she has not done anything wrong.
Internal polling by the Liberal Party has picked up a sizeable 6 per cent swing against the Government in a key WA battleground – Burt.
A new generation of Aboriginal stockmen is emerging as the Mowanjum community rides high on the success of its cattle station near Derby.
A British charity wants to build an historical “walkway” through Perth to commemorate the city’s place in the Commonwealth and the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.
The WA government will allocate $500,000 for a committee to plan improvements to the ageing Perth Quadriplegic Centre.
The Western Australian government will spend more than $1.5 million on shark detection in the 2016/17 budget.
The owner of the biggest legal cannabis crop in the world has taken a 15 per cent stake in Perth’s AusCann Group Holdings — WA’s home-grown medical cannabis company.
Dacian Gold has positioned itself for a big resource increase at its Mt Morgans gold project after announcing broad gold intersections from the latest drilling.
Perth Energy, the junior electricity provider used by the WA Government as a poster child for the Muja AB power station, says it “does not care” if the State decides to shut the much-maligned coal-fired generator.
