China tourist ban to bite
Thousands of Chinese tourists planning to travel to Australia over the next two months have been forced to cancel their trips after Beijing slapped a ban on tour groups overseas in an effort to control the spread of the coronavirus. The Fin
Woodside beats big claim
Energy giant Woodside Petroleum has fended off a $400 million-plus legal attack by the Malaysian supplier of a floating production and storage ship for the closed Balnaves oil field. The West
Bob Hawke College ready to open doors
Soaring ceilings and light-filled classrooms will greet about 260 Year 7 students when Perth’s newest public high school, Bob Hawke College, opens its doors for the first time next week. The West
Rio mining big data, AI to bleed ‘desperate’ suppliers
Big data and artificial intelligence are being used to calculate how much of a cut Rio Tinto’s suppliers are willing to take to their invoices in exchange for prompt payment, creating a “product that varies based upon how desperate your supplier is”, according to the Small Business Ombudsman. The Aus
Bug risks billions
More than $600,000 a day could be wiped from Australian oil export earnings and “billions” overall from the total economy if the spread of coronavirus continues, the Australian Government has been warned. The West
NBN guns for more business customers
NBN Co will target hundreds of thousands of new business customers with its broadband packages, in defiance of private sector complaints it is breaching its wholesale-only remit by marketing directly to end-business customers. The Fin
Food bowl at risk, warns Credit Suisse
The future of Australia’s agricultural food bowl could be at risk from changed weather patterns resulting from climate change, according to Credit Suisse. The Fin
CSIRO chief hunts national opportunities
CSIRO chief executive Larry Marshall admits he’s perplexed by Australia’s inability to move up the global innovation rankings, but says smart adoption of artificial intelligence and advances in quantum technologies will be central to the economy in the 2020s. The Fin
Tourism takes tumble after Uluru climbing ban
Hoteliers and resort owners working in the shadow of Uluru have been hit by a tourism industry downturn, with prices being slashed by as much as 40 per cent. The Fin
In-car computers not up to the job
WA Police is “decommissioning” its TADIS in-built computer system soon amid concern from frontline cops and the Police Union that the system has become an embarrassment. The West
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Thousands of Chinese tourists planning to travel to Australia over the next two months have been forced to cancel their trips after Beijing slapped a ban on tour groups overseas in an effort to control the spread of the coronavirus.
Page 3: The future of Australia’s agricultural food bowl could be at risk from changed weather patterns resulting from climate change, according to Credit Suisse.
Page 5: Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has set up a snap review to consider closing a loophole that allows financial advisers or stockbrokers to receive lucrative commissions for selling poorly performing listed investment funds to mum and dad investors.
Page 8: The $15 billion Chinese-student market is under threat as universities and schools lock in emergency plans to protect against the coronavirus, including ‘‘self-quarantining’’, and the federal government widens the scope of a task force to look at damage to the sector from the crisis.
Page 10: More than 330 Amazon employees violated the e-commerce giant’s communications policy on Sunday (Monday AEDT) in an unprecedented public display of support for colleagues who were warned that they could be fired for speaking out to criticise the company’s climate practices.
Page 13: NBN Co will target hundreds of thousands of new business customers with its broadband packages, in defiance of private sector complaints it is breaching its wholesale-only remit by marketing directly to end-business customers.
Page 14: Mining plant and equipment provider Emeco Holdings is expected to be in the market this week, seeking fresh funds for an acquisition.
Page 15: Retailers say they are being slugged as much as $550 million a year in unnecessary card transaction fees following the boom in tap and go contactless credit cards.
Page 17: The chairman of the Senate committee that aims to speed up the use of financial technology recognises that the national narrative around innovation policy must change to ensure that people don’t fear the loss of their jobs.
Page 19: CSIRO chief executive Larry Marshall admits he’s perplexed by Australia’s inability to move up the global innovation rankings, but says smart adoption of artificial intelligence and advances in quantum technologies will be central to the economy in the 2020s.
The Australian
Page 1: Scott Morrison will move to cut overpayments to more than a million welfare recipients under new laws expected to deliver a $2bn budget saving.
Page 2: A crackdown on foreigners trying to enter Australia illegally and exploit protection visas has resulted in a huge spike in interceptions at overseas airports and passengers being kicked off flights, with the new approach stopping 1730 arrivals in 2018-19.
Page 5: Master Builders Australia has attacked a new app developed by the $57 billion construction industry super fund Cbus to track employer superannuation contributions, claiming it allows the “serial” law-breaking construction union to act as “quasi debt collectors”.
Hoteliers and resort owners working in the shadow of Uluru have been hit by a tourism industry downturn, with prices being slashed by as much as 40 per cent.
Page 15: Australia’s biggest accounting firms have blamed the sector’s poor audit quality findings partly on unskilled and biased Australian Securities & Investments Commission investigators in confidential letters to the government after the regulator slammed the industry for sliding standards.
Big data and artificial intelligence are being used to calculate how much of a cut Rio Tinto’s suppliers are willing to take to their invoices in exchange for prompt payment, creating a “product that varies based upon how desperate your supplier is”, according to the Small Business Ombudsman.
Page 23: The boss of multi-billion-dollar global technology company Slack has warned against “kneejerk” regulation that could entrench the market power of Google and Facebook rather than rein it in, as the US continues to mull fresh antitrust enforcement.
The West Australian
Page 7: WA has the lowest child immunisation rate in the country, despite a rise in immunisation across Australia.
Page 8: Welfare recipients will have simpler income reporting conditions under new Federal Government changes predicted to save the Budget $2.1 billion over the next four years.
Page 10: More than $600,000 a day could be wiped from Australian oil export earnings and “billions” overall from the total economy if the spread of coronavirus continues, the Australian Government has been warned.
Page 11: Some children’s sweet lunchbox treats contain so much salt kids would exceed their recommended intake for a whole day by eating just a single choc-chip muffin.
Page 14: WA Police is “decommissioning” its TADIS in-built computer system soon amid concern from frontline cops and the Police Union that the system has become an embarrassment.
Page 18: Soaring ceilings and light-filled classrooms will greet about 260 Year 7 students when Perth’s newest public high school, Bob Hawke College, opens its doors for the first time next week.
Business: Energy giant Woodside Petroleum has fended off a $400 million-plus legal attack by the Malaysian supplier of a floating production and storage ship for the closed Balnaves oil field.
The two shipping standstills imposed on Australia’s live sheep trade in the past two years have stripped WA farmers of up to $27 million, according to a report analysing the moratoriums’ impact on rural towns.
WA’s economy is looking up with several leading indicators pointing to an improving performance, despite the State retaining its lowly ranking of seventh in a data comparison against others, according to CommSec.
WA’s 230 commercial rock-lobster operators have stopped fishing — just weeks into the start of this year’s season — because Chinese demand has dried up after travel restrictions aimed at containing the deadly coronavirus.
A potential sale of the trustee firm behind the failed Sterling First rent-for-life scheme fell apart just days after the corporate regulator raised concerns, according to a report by administrators.
