PM 'lets women down on pay' – The Aus; Forrest in inheritance crack – The West; Shell eyes new LNG plan for Browse – The Aus; Treasurer sweats on property recovery – The West; Clough chief calls on sector to shape up – The Fin
PM 'lets women down on pay'
Julia Gillard’s claim to be the policy champion of equal rights for women was under fire last night after her home state accused her of reneging on a deal to fund higher wages for low-paid community sector workers, and welfare leaders said she was robbing the poorest single mothers in the country through welfare cuts. The Aus
Forrest in inheritance crack
Andrew Forrest has sparked a war of words with fellow iron ore billionaire Gina Rinehart after using Fortescue Metals Group's annual report to pour scorn on companies that inherited their assets. The West
Shell eyes new LNG plan for Browse
A senior Royal Dutch Shell executive has done little to dampen growing speculation that the company will push its revolutionary floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) technology as a solution to the ongoing controversy over the $US45 billion Browse project in Western Australia. The Aus
Treasurer sweats on property recovery
The state government is sweating on a recovery in the property market to arrest its financial slide, after Treasurer Troy Buswell warned yesterday that volatile iron ore prices and royalty revenue meant a budget deficit could not be ruled out. The West
Clough chief calls on sector to shape up
Clough chief executive Kevin Gallagher has blamed over-ambitious tendering among engineering companies for some of the difficulties in the sector, arguing they should have taken on fewer contracts and better anticipated the slump in market conditions. The Fin
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 3: Leading WA designer Ruth Tarvydas' fashion empire is in financial difficulty and will close its flagship King Street store as a result of “astronomical” rent and gloomy retail conditions.
Page 4: A strike crippling one of Perth's industrial ports is expected to enter its third day today after negotiations between union heavyweights and port officials failed.
Wheat growers have launched a scathing attack on Tony Abbott's attempt to stop WA Liberals supporting the Gillard government's move for the complete deregulation of the wheat industry.
Page 7: Green groups have promised to fight the start of uranium mining in WA to the bitter end after Environment Minister Bill Marmion approved Toro Energy's Wiluna project yesterday.
Page 9: Tony Abbotthas accused Julia Gillard of using her sex to deflect legitimate criticism, stepping up the gender warfare between the two leaders in the wake of Peter Slipper's resignation.
Page 13: Rents for homes and units across Perth are growing at almost 10 times the inflation rate as the city's growing population squeezes the property market.
Page 15: It was the original outlet in what has become the highly successful Muzz Buzz chain of drive-through coffee shops, but its franchisee says he's going under because of roadworks along Great Eastern Highway.
Business: Andrew Forrest has sparked a war of words with fellow iron ore billionaire Gina Rinehart after using Fortescue Metals Group's annual report to pour scorn on companies that inherited their assets.
A fresh Chinese takeover for rare earths miner Lynas Corp would likely fail, after the head of the Foreign Investment Review Board said one of its prime concerns in examining investment in Australia's resources sector was market concentration.
Apache Energy has lost a bid to delay Alcoa's $158 million damages claim stemming from the 2008 Varanus Island explosion.
The state government is sweating on a recovery in the property market to arrest its financial slide, after Treasurer Troy Buswell warned yesterday that volatile iron ore prices and royalty revenue meant a budget deficit could not be ruled out.
Calibre Group has made its biggest acquisition to date by snapping up a Queensland engineering firm for up to $100 million as part of efforts to reduce its dependence on WA iron ore projects.
The Peter Buck-chaired PMI Gold Corp was on the verge last night of taking a substantial step towards becoming the latest WA company to produce gold in Africa, with plans to hit up investors for as much as $US100 million.
GR Engineering's shares rose 5 per cent yesterday after settling a $47 million damages claim by a mining client.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: A senior Chinese financial official has backed easier access to China for Australian fund managers under a plan for region-wide mutual recognition of investment funds.
Qantas Airways and Virgin Australia have ended their war over market share in the domestic market, a decision that should avoid serious damage to both airlines' profits.
A Chinese conglomerate could emerge as a major supplier of fresh produce to Woolworths and Coles by acquiring a significant share of Australia's largest fruit and vegetable wholesaler, Moraitis Group.
Page 3: The corporate regulator has warned it will step up scrutiny of complex financial instruments amid concerns that retail investors will fall prey to misleading products as they seek alternative investments outside equity markets.
Page 5: The head of the foreign investment watchdog has warned that hostile attitudes towards Chinese investment could hurt the economy unless current tensions ease.
Page 7: Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson has urged the competition regulator to clear the 10-year alliance between Qantas and Emirates.
Page 9: Potential home buyers are starting to stir, according to a prominent consumer survey that adds to signs the Reserve Bank of Australia's recent interest rate cuts may stoke the property market.
Global financial stability has deteriorated over the past six months despite rising sharemarkets, according to the International Monetary Fund.
Page 10: One of the early architects of Australia's national electricity market will today call for a full-scale overhaul of the market design, warning that government intervention on carbon, renewable energy and power prices means it is at risk of failure.
Page 23: Perth property developer Nigel Satterley has continued his push into the art world, hosting a second major commercial show at one of his private residences specially renovated for the event.
Page 25: Clough chief executive Kevin Gallagher has blamed over-ambitious tendering among engineering companies for some of the difficulties in the sector, arguing they should have taken on fewer contracts and better anticipated the slump in market conditions.
Page 27: The US hedge funds that control Nine Entertainment Co's debt are expected to reject a compromise deal from management to restructure the media group's $3.3 billion debt mountain.
Rio Tinto has all but ruled out a new share buyback program and admitted it does not have enough capital to invest in all of its value-adding growth options, as uncertainty continues over the short-term outlook.
Page 32: The stand-off between Qantas Airways and Air Pacific over the sale of the Australian airline's stake in Fiji's national carrier is no closer to a resolution, neither side moving to re-establish contact after Qantas removed its directors in June.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Julia Gillard’s claim to be the policy champion of equal rights for women was under fire last night after her home state accused her of reneging on a deal to fund higher wages for low-paid community sector workers, and welfare leaders said she was robbing the poorest single mothers in the country through welfare cuts.
Julia Gillard’s judgement and authority are again under attack from within her government after independents Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshott took the initiative in forcing Peter Slipper to resign, leaving Labor as the Speaker’s last defender.
Page 2: Bank accounts of failed timber company Gunns containing at least $3 million have been frozen and measures taken to secure and forensically examine company electronic data and records.
The chairman of the Foreign Investment Review Board says the body is trying to ‘‘dial down the tension’’ as proposed sales of Australian assets to Asian buyers continue to stir controversy.
Page 6: Liberal women have accused the government of ‘‘a repugnant smear’’ after Jenny Macklin told Melbourne radio ‘‘all of the way that he behaves’’ shows Tony Abbott is a misogynist.
Page 7: Leading economists have lent their voices to the dissent over the ongoing political circus in Canberra, saying the recent actions of politicians were weighing on confidence and contributing to economic uncertainty.
Page 10: Mitt Romney has entered the last stretch of the US presidential campaign with renewed enthusiasm, predicting an election victory after a series of opinion polls show him ahead of Barack Obama or running neck and neck.
Business: A senior Royal Dutch Shell executive has done little to dampen growing speculation that the company will push its revolutionary floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) technology as a solution to the ongoing controversy over the $US45 billion Browse project in Western Australia.
The Australian Securities & Investments Commission yesterday signalled plans to step up its surveillance of high-frequency trading and share selling in unregulated ‘‘dark pools’’.
Governance and proxy advisory firms will be monitoring executive changes at Leighton Holdings after the company appointed the chief operating officer of its German parent, Hochtief, to its board.
Fortescue's billionaire chairman and one-third shareholder Andrew Forrest has acknowledged that the group’s drastic restructuring with the loss of 1000 jobs at its Pilbara operations had caused ‘‘very real pain’’.
Rio Tinto says it cannot afford to go ahead with all its profitable planned projects as it battles rising development costs and its cash flows fall with commodities prices.
Australian Foundation Investment Company chairman Bruce Teele has lamented the decline of the Australian manufacturing sector and the sale of infrastructure assets to foreign buyers, saying local investors are being deprived of opportunities.
Global policy-makers must do more to drive economic recovery and take the pressure off central banks as markets approach the US’s ‘‘fiscal cliff’’, one of Goldman Sachs’s most senior economists has warned.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says Julia Gillard has played the gender card to deflect criticism. TV networks have begun discussions about constructing a joint streaming service after ACMA revealed that 5.2 million Australians watch videos online. Scientists from WA's Murdoch University say extracting DNA from dinosaur fossils is extremely improbable.
Page 2: Defence lawyers argue that evidence about Reserve Bank corruption is skewed by investigator's bias.
Page 3: A police officer has been warned not to treat the coroner as stupid during the inquest in the death of Brazilian student Roberto Laudisio Curti.
World: Polls indicate the race for the American presidency has tightened as Barack Obama and Mitt Romney both hit the crucial state of Ohio.
Business: Nine Entertainment has two days to decide whether to grant $150 million in equity to junior debt holders.
Sport: Canterbury rugby league club chief Todd Greenberg says he's still the top dog in the organisation.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: The Liberal Party has secretly sought support for an amendment from Craig Thomson, breaking their pledge to never accept his "tainted" vote.
Page 2: Sydney City Council makes $834,000 a week from parking fines, helping it recover from the brink of bankruptcy to become on of NSW's wealthiest councils.
Page 3: Woolworths is set to launch a new style of supermarket featuring pizza, sushi bars and iPads.
World: A 14-year-old children's rights activist has been shot in the head by the Pakistani Taliban for campaigning on the right to an education.
Business: Hedge fund lenders have swapped $1 billion worth of debt for a 7.5 per cent stake in the Nine Network.
Sport: Rugby league immortal Andrew Johns is expecting criticism for taking drugs when he is inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.
THE AGE:
Page 1: Victoria Police accuse Catholic Church of deliberately hindering its investigations into child abuse. Julia Gillard says women have had enough of Tony Abbott's sexism but the Opposition Leader won't be backing down. State auditor finds that major projects in Victoria are routinely over budget, months late and plagued by poor accountability, waste and mismanagement.
Page 3: Koori pathways schools to close after Victorian government review finds the $4.2 million a year program is not helping indigenous children to return to mainstream schools. Melbourne City councillors want the Baillieu government to hand back planning powers as a row erupts over a proposed 71 storey residential tower in the CBD. Geoffrey Edelsten tells a court he wants the money back he lent to a US woman he met on suggardaddyforme.com. Smokers face a $140 fine for lighting up on Victorian beaches this summer. Victoria's lung transplant program continues to be underfunded.
World: Obama under pressure after support for Mitt Romney increases following last week's televised debate.
Business: Crunch time for debt-laden Channel Nine as major lenders to lend more money or have the business put into into administration.
Sport: Melbourne coach Mark Neeld meets with out-of-contract Essendon forward Scott Gumbleton saying he would be Plan B if they can't lure Collingwood's Chris Dawes to the club.
THE HERALD SUN:
Page 1: Rudd supporters will use the Peter Slipper fiasco to undermine Julia Gillard.
Page 2: Convicted rapist Mike Tyson gets visa for Australia for speaking tour but warned to keep his hands to himself. Police allege church leaders told sex abuse victims to keep quiet.
Page 3: Victoria's beaches to become no-smoking zones from the start of summer. Graphic close-up photos of a man dying from lung cancer will cover both sides of new cigarette packing.
World: German Chancellor Angela Merkel tells Greece the tough austerity program will pay off as thousands protest in Athens.
Business: The fate of debt-laden Channel Nine rests in the hands of US hedge fund lenders.
Sport: AFL players, coaches and sport scientists team up to fight any changes to the interchange rules.
THE CANBERRA TIMES:
Page 1: Bali police warn of a possible plot to attack dignitaries, including Prime Minister Julia Gillard, at a service to mark the tenth anniversary of the 2002 bombings in Kuta.
Page 2: New figures show the RSPCA in the ACT had to put down 6.5 per cent of all dogs it received last financial year, compared with the euthanasia rate in NSW of about 40 per cent.
Page 3: NBN Co says it will "switch off" services on the existing copper network in 15 areas across Victoria, NSW, Tasmania, South Australia and Queensland in a little over 18 months.
World: NATO says it is ready to defend Turkey in a possible conflict with Syria.
Business: Junior lenders, led by Goldman Sachs, make a significant concession as part of Nine Entertainment's drawn-out debt talks.
Sport: Netball Australia announces it will play a Test against New Zealand next year to coincide with Canberra's centenary celebrations.
THE ADELAIDE ADVERTISER:
Page 1: The federal coalition chases Craig Thomson's vote.
Page 3: Big travel bill revealed for senior military officers accompanying ministers on overseas trips.
World: Sesame Street asks the Obama presidential campaign to stop using Big Bird in a campaign advertisement (Washington). Teenage girl is shot in the head by the Taliban in Pakistan (Mingora, Pakistan).
Business: Nine Entertainment's prospects of avoiding receivership improve after debt holders agree to restructure.
Sport: Swan Heath Grundy will not be part of any trade to have Kurt Tippett move to Sydney next year. South Australia skittled by Tasmania in its first innings of the Sheffield Shield match at Adelaide Oval.
