China’s social warfare database
A Chinese military contractor that boasts of spreading disinformation and promoting conflict has compiled profiles on more than 35,000 Australians from Prime Minister Scott Morrison to billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes as part of a giant global database targeting influential figures. The Fin
Treasurer to Rio: hire Australian CEO
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has told the chairman of Rio Tinto that the company’s next chief executive should be Australian, along with the majority of its directors. The Fin
Energy industry wants reform, clarity
Australia’s oil and gas industry will deliver a five-year blueprint to Scott Morrison this week, calling on the federal government to deliver major tax, environmental and regulatory reforms and back the unlocking of investment and exploration across the gas sector. The Aus
AGMs go online for first time
Thousands of WA investors will tap into online annual general meetings for the first time over the next three months as more companies opt for virtual or hybrid gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic. The West
States urged to open borders to fruit pickers
Farmers in Western Australia, Queensland and Tasmania could miss out on accessing thousands of overseas workers to help pick crops this harvest if their governments don’t sign the agricultural workers’ code that allows crossborder movements. The Aus
Forrest, Fortescue team dodge terrorist attack
Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest has narrowly avoided being caught up in a deadly terrorist attack while negotiating a deal in Afghanistan. The Fin
China’s spend in Australia is collapsing
Chinese commercial investment in Australia fell more than 47 per cent to just $2.5 billion in 2019, and is expected to fall further amid tensions between the two countries, according to the Australian National University’s latest Chinese Investment in Australia database. The Fin
Plan to keep petrol price low
WA could be home to a number of new domestic fuel reserves under a major announcement to be made by the Federal Government today to help keep prices low at the bowser. The West
TWU engages EY to bid for threatened Qantas jobs
The Transport Workers Union has recruited EY and top employment lawyer Josh Bornstein of Maurice Blackburn to help it decide whether to submit an in-house bid aimed at preventing Qantas outsourcing more than 2000 ground handling staff. The Fin
Rare earth miner VHM up for sale
The Chris Ellison-backed rare earth producer VHM is understood to have launched a sales process, with the group expected to fetch up to $500m. The Aus
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: A Chinese military contractor that boasts of spreading disinformation and promoting conflict has compiled profiles on more than 35,000 Australians from Prime Minister Scott Morrison to billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes as part of a giant global database targeting influential figures.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has told the chairman of Rio Tinto that the company’s next chief executive should be Australian, along with the majority of its directors.
Page 2: Foxtel is pushing Cricket Australia for a discount on its $600 million rights deal ahead of the virus-hit summer schedule and potentially more exclusive games at the same time as free-to-air broadcaster Seven West Media threatens to terminate its contract.
Page 3: Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest has narrowly avoided being caught up in a deadly terrorist attack while negotiating a deal in Afghanistan.
The inner workings of James Packer’s private empire will be exposed when Mr Packer and two of his key lieutenants appear before the NSW casino inquiry over several weeks of crucial hearings beginning next week.
Page 5: Chinese commercial investment in Australia fell more than 47 per cent to just $2.5 billion in 2019, and is expected to fall further amid tensions between the two countries, according to the Australian National University’s latest Chinese Investment in Australia database.
Page 11: A bargaining code forcing tech companies to compensate media outlets for using content could get support from the Greens, who are signalling some support for the Morrison government to rein in the ‘‘power and greed’’ of Facebook and Google.
Page 15: Chastened Rio Tinto chairman Simon Thompson has vowed to steer the mining company through the replacement of ousted chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques and has rejected suggestions that boardroom divisions have reached problematic levels.
Page 17: The COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly accelerated a structural shift to online shopping in the retail sector and the chief executive of digital health company Doctor Care Anywhere says a similar big shift has happened in medicine where online consultations are booming.
The Transport Workers Union has recruited EY and top employment lawyer Josh Bornstein of Maurice Blackburn to help it decide whether to submit an in-house bid aimed at preventing Qantas outsourcing more than 2000 ground handling staff.
Page 19: Labor and consumer groups have rebuffed a bid by a Senate committee to steer the Reserve Bank and the corporate regulator away from making policy that could curtail the booming buy now, pay later sector, urging the regulators to keep up the scrutiny on Afterpay and others.
Page 20: Simon McKeon’s appointment as the flag-bearer for Rio Tinto’s beefed-up Australian presence is a case of life coming full circle, given the Melbourne-based director helped create the miner’s dual-listed company structure when he was a young investment banker at Macquarie.
The Australian
Page 1: The chiefs of some of the country’s largest companies, including CSL, BHP and Wesfarmers, have urged the Victorian government to lift the “wartime” curfew on Melbourne, warning that the continued lockdown will cause irreparable damage to the community and economy.
Australia’s long-term fuel supplies will be greatly increased and the nation’s refineries handed a lifeline under Scott Morrison’s five-year economic blueprint to protect jobs and industries by delivering cheaper and more reliable energy.
Page 3: The chairman of the independent committee which gave the green light for Rio Tinto to destroy the Juukan Gorge caves, a significant archaeological research site, held shares in the mining giant and did not recuse himself from the meeting that signed off on the contentious decision.
Page 4: The country’s largest supermarket operators have directly appealed to the Victorian government to ease stage-four restrictions on shipping groceries from warehouses into stores that they say could lead to a food shortage by Christmas.
Page 6: Farmers in Western Australia, Queensland and Tasmania could miss out on accessing thousands of overseas workers to help pick crops this harvest if their governments don’t sign the agricultural workers’ code that allows cross-border movements.
Page 7: Australia’s oil and gas industry will deliver a five-year blueprint to Scott Morrison this week, calling on the federal government to deliver major tax, environmental and regulatory reforms and back the unlocking of investment and exploration across the gas sector.
Page 13: Rio Tinto faces extended pressure to refocus on Australia as it deals with the scandal that claimed the scalps of three top executives, even as chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques defends his legacy to the miner’s global workforce.
China has the potential to inflict much more damage on Australia’s exports than it has done so far, a report by the Australia-China Relations Institute (ACRI) warns.
Page 14: The Chris Ellison-backed rare earth producer VHM is understood to have launched a sales process, with the group expected to fetch up to $500m.
Page 15: Coles is whipping its grocery supply chain into shape as it prepares to transition to its new $150m hi-tech, fully automated distribution centres, and has warned its suppliers it will be ratcheting up inspections of pallets delivered to its doors to minimise waste and inefficiencies in the system.
Page 19: Advertising bosses have warned that the removal of news by Facebook and Google from their sites in Australia may significantly weaken their appeal to companies that market their brands on the tech giants’ platforms.
The West Australian
Page 1: Footy fans will have one more opportunity to flock to Optus Stadium this season with West Coast set to host a home final in Perth if they finish fifth on the ladder as expected.
Page 3: Converting WA’s primary energy system to 90 per cent renewables before the end of the decade would slash emissions by 95 per cent and create more than 8600 full-time equivalent jobs, a study has found.
Perth’s first floating pub is in position on the Swan River with less than a fortnight to go before its grand opening.
Page 4: Opposition Leader Liza Harvey has renewed calls for $10,000 cash grants for coronavirus-impacted small businesses, accusing the McGowan Government of prioritising an “election war chest” over providing genuine economic stimulus and relief.
Page 6: WA’s hard border is popular with police — almost 95 per cent of the State’s officers back the State Government’s measures to stop the spread of COVID-19, according to a new survey.
Backpackers currently in Western Australia should be permitted to extend their visas for a further year to avoid exacerbating a growing shortage of hospitality workers.
Page 8: Cash funding provided by the WA Football Commission to the State’s largest grassroots footy organisation is 40 per cent lower than six years ago, a parliamentary inquiry has been told.
Page 10: WA could be home to a number of new domestic fuel reserves under a major announcement to be made by the Federal Government today to help keep prices low at the bowser.
Business: Thousands of WA investors will tap into online annual general meetings for the first time over the next three months as more companies opt for virtual or hybrid gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic.
The majority of WA businesses are expected to come off the Federal Government’s Job-Keeper subsidy in a little over two weeks, with experts predicting many will no longer meet eligibility requirements.
Thai Airways, Thailand’s flagship carrier, faces one of the biggest challenges in its 60-year history, with a court set to rule today on its debt restructuring.
