O75 Public Administration

Worst year since Great Depression

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 15-Apr-20

The International Monetary Fund has forecast that the Australian economy will contract by 6.7 per cent in 2020 due to the coronavirus lockdown. However, the IMF expects the domestic economy to rebound by 6.1 per cent in 2021, assuming that measures to contain the virus are successful. The IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook also forecasts that global GDP growth will fall by three per cent in 2020, compared with just 0.1 per cent during the global financial crisis. The IMF has warned of the potential for a second wave of the coronavirus if a vaccine is not developed.

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INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND

Australia set to emerge with V-shaped recovery

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Original article by Luke Housego
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 30 : 15-Apr-20

Tim Toohey of Yarra Capital forecasts that the majority of developed economies will record a 3-5 per cent decline in GDP growth for 2020. A recent quarterly survey of economists found that the median forecast is for a 3.9 per cent decline in Australia’s GDP growth for the year. Toohey says the domestic economy is likely to experience a V-shaped recovery when it eventually comes. He adds that the "biggest unknown" is just how long the coronavirus lockdown restrictions will remain in place.

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YARRA CAPITAL PARTNERS PTY LTD

Wharfies vote to reject new EBA

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 8 : 14-Apr-20

Victoria Inter­national Container Terminal employees have voted against a new non-union enterprise agreement at Webb Dock in Melbourne. The current agreement is due to expire in October. The Maritime Union of Australia has lodged a claim with VICT that would see the pay and conditions of its workers brought into line with those at Qube, DP World and Patrick. MUA official Will Tracey says it and VICT are "not that far apart" on salaries, while the MUA may review its log of claims, given that most of it was compiled before the COVID-19 outbreak.

CORPORATES
VICTORIA INTERNATIONAL CONTAINER TERMINAL LIMITED, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, QUBE HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX QUB, DP WORLD AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PATRICK CORPORATION LIMITED

Virgin CEO in Canberra bailout pitch

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Original article by Robyn Ironside, Bridget Carter
The Australian – Page: 13 & 16 : 14-Apr-20

The federal government is believed to be considering additional financial support for the nation’s airlines, to ensure that passenger and freight services continue on essential domestic routes. Virgin Australia CEO Paul Scurrah has been lobbying government ministers and Labor frontbenchers to secure support for a proposed $1.4bn loan facility for the struggling carrier. Virgin could opt for a creditor’s scheme of arrangement if government support is not forthcoming; this could result in a debt-for-equity swap, which would have to be approved by shareholders and a court. Labor has backed calls for the government to provide more financial support for Virgin.

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VIRGIN AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX VAH, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Crisis cabinet to outlive virus

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Original article by Geoff Chambers, Paige Taylor, Joe Kelly, Richard Ferguson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 14-Apr-20

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has praised the high level of federal and state co-operation since the national cabinet was established in mid-March. He has flagged the possibility that the national cabinet model could be retained when the coronavirus crisis is over. Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan has called for the national cabinet to permanently replace the Council of Australian Governments, which typically meets twice a year. The 13th meeting of the national cabinet will be held on 16 April.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENTS

Infection rate falls below one raising hopes virus is fading

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Original article by Tom Burton
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 14-Apr-20

The global death toll from the coronavirus has risen to 119,113; more than 1,917,000 people worldwide have been diagnosed with the respiratory illness. There are 6,359 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Australia, and the nation’s death toll has risen to 61. Professor James McCaw of the Doherty Institute says there is now sufficient local data on the virus to publish an ‘effective reproduction rate’, which his research team hopes to do shortly. The team estimates that Australia’s effective reproduction rate has fallen below one, as social distancing measures help to curb the virus’s spread. Meanwhile, the death toll in the US has risen to 23,485 after an additional 1,380 deaths were reported in the last day.

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PETER DOHERTY INSTITUTE FOR INFECTION AND IMMUNITY, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE

Slightly more Britons (68%) than Australians (65%) now say their Government is handling COVID-19 well

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 14-Apr-20

Over two-third of Britons (68%) say the UK Government is handling COVID-19 well, up 19% since March 18-20. This is slightly higher than the 65% of Australians who say the Australian Government is handling COVID-19 well – an increase of 22% from a week earlier, according to a Roy Morgan survey in early April. In addition, nine-in-ten Britons (89%) agree the UK Government guidance on social distancing is clear and easy to understand, compared to only 9% that disagree. Surveying in the UK was conducted by ORB International, the UK Member of the Gallup International Association and affiliated with Roy Morgan.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, ORB INTERNATIONAL, GALLUP INTERNATIONAL

Jobless rise to hit 10pc: Treasury

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Original article by Phillip Coorey, James Fernyhough
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 14-Apr-20

The Treasury estimates that the coronavirus pandemic will see unemployment peak at 10 per cent in the June quarter, compared with an official jobless rate of just 5.1 per cent in February. It would be the first time Australia has recorded double-digit unemployment since April 1994. The Treasury’s analysis also concludes that unemployment would have risen to around 15 per cent without the federal government’s JobKeeper scheme. Former AMP CEO Andrew Mohl is among the business leaders who have called for lockdown measures to be progressively wound back, noting that the restrictions are costing the economy some $550m per day in lost GDP.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP

We may be over-reacting to an unremarkable virus

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Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 10 : 14-Apr-20

Australia’s low death toll from the coronavirus and the nation’s comparatively low infection rate suggests that the lockdown measures may have been an over-reaction. Dire forecasts of hospitals being swamped with patients needing ventilators have not materialised, while government debt and the unemployment rate will rise sharply due to the coronavirus response. Indeed, a Roy Morgan survey for March found that the jobless rate is likely to double. Maintaining the lockdown for six months is unsustainable, and attention must soon turn to restarting the economy.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Coronavirus JobKeeper package passes Parliament after Labor amendments fail

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Original article by Matthew Doran
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 9-Apr-20

More than 730,000 businesses have registered with the Australian Taxation Office to access the federal government’s wage subsidy scheme. A special sitting of parliament has passed the JobKeeper legislation, with eligible businesses to receive $1,500 per fortnight for each worker they continue to employ during the pandemic. Labor backed the legislation despite failing in its push for the scheme to be expanded to include casual workers who have been with their employer for less than a year and temporary visa holders.

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AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY