O75 Public Administration

Test for Labor as PM eyes victory

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Original article by Simon Benson, Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 9-Sep-19

The federal government looks set to get bills that would see drug testing for welfare recipients introduced and its cashless welfare card expanded passed, after independent senator Jacquie Lambie indicated she would support them. In return for her support, the federal government will waive the $157 million housing debt that Tasmania owes the commonwealth. Labor caucus is said to be divided over Labor leader Anthony Albanese’s decision to enforce a ‘no vote’ on both bills, while manager of opposition business Tony Burke claims the two bills will not create any more jobs but will just "humiliate" people.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Our income recession is over

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 7 : 6-Sep-19

New data shows that real disposable income per capita increased by one per cent in the June quarter and by 2.7 per cent in the year to June. Real disposable income per capita has risen in four consecutive quarters and it is now $59,258, compared with the OECD average of $44,845. Chris Richardson of Deloitte Access Economics says the growth in income per capita may not be sustained, given that the iron ore price has retreated from its recent highs.

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DELOITTE ACCESS ECONOMICS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, INDUSTRY SUPER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. INSTITUTE OF APPLIED ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Morrison spruiks infrastructure as key

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Original article by Richard Ferguson
The Australian – Page: 4 : 6-Sep-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison hopes the federal government’s massive infrastructure investment program will help stimulate the economy. The government will spend some $100bn on infrastructure projects over the next decade, including $48.2bn over the next four years. However, shadow infrastructure minister Catherine King contends that the government failed to meet its infrastructure spending commitments in its first five Budgets.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Cyber threat to transport, power

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 6-Sep-19

Home Affairs­ Minister Peter Dutton will release a cyber security consultation paper on 6 September. It warns of the growing threat to Australia’s critical infrastructure, including energy, tele­communications and transport networks. The paper will note that industrial plants are also vulnerable to targeted attacks from state-sponsored hackers and cyber criminals. Dutton will also call for greater co-operation between governments and business, warning of the heightened risk since the Coalition released its cyber security strategy in 2016.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIAN SECURITY INTELLIGENCE ORGANISATION, MAERSK, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE LIMITED

Dragging the chain on wage theft must stop

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 2 : 4-Sep-19

ACTU secretary Sally McManus has outlined a range of proposed workplace reform measures in a four-page letter to Industrial Relations Minister Christian Porter. Amongst other things, McManus has called for action to combat wage theft, an overhaul of the annual minimum wage review, the winding back of penalty rate cuts and allowing unions to undertake sector-wide enterprise bargaining. Porter has indicated that the government will shortly release discussion papers on issues such as wage underpayments.

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ACTU, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, SKILLS, SMALL AND FAMILY BUSINESS, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

Surplus may signal new era for dollar

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Original article by Patrick Commins, Jonathan Shapiro
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 4-Sep-19

The Commonwealth Bank’s Richard Grace says the current account is unlikely to remain in surplus, citing the level of the nation’s net income deficit. However, he notes that the net income deficit – which is currently 3.4 per cent of GDP – will improve as superannuation funds increase their offshore holdings. Grace adds that factors such as a gradual reduction in the net income deficit and a structural improvement in the trade balance are likely to boost the Australian dollar over the longer-term.

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COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, EXANTE DATA, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

RBA eyes housing rebound as economic growth slows

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Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 4-Sep-19

The latest national accounts data is expected to show that Australia’s GDP growth slowed to about 1.5 per cent in the year to June, well below the federal government’s May 2019 Budget forecast of 2.25 per cent growth. Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe has reiterated that economic growth will improve "gradually"; he notes that although new housing construction activity remains weak, there are signs of an upturn in the established housing market. The central bank’s decision to leave official interest rates on hold in September coincided with the release of data confirming a current account surplus of $5.9bn for the June quarter, the first since the 1970s.

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RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, CAPITAL ECONOMICS LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence virtually unchanged at 114.4

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 4-Sep-19

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence rose 0.3% to 114.4 in the week ended 1 September, its second straight weekly gain. Households’ views towards current financial conditions fell 3.3% after a strong rise in the previous week, but views towards future financial conditions gained 1.3%; both measures are above average. Consumers’ views toward current economic conditions fell 2.7%, the fifth consecutive decline, while views towards future economic conditions gained 3.8%; both sub-indices are below average. The ‘time to buy a major household item’ index gained 1.7% following a rise of 4% in the previous week, and the four-week moving average for inflation expectations rose 0.1ppt to 4%.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Quiet Australians shifted votes because of Shorten, not Morrison

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 3-Sep-19

Research undertaken by the Australian National University shows that 28.5 per cent of electors switched their voting intentions during the federal election campaign. The analysis of voters’ behaviour also shows that 39.6 per cent of electors who had intended to vote for Labor when the election was called in April subsequently voted for the Coalition on 18 May. Likewise, 37.2 per cent of electors who had expressed their intention to vote for the Coalition ended up giving Labor their vote. The research has concluded that the unpopularity of former Labor leader Bill Shorten was a key factor in the election outcome, rather than Labor’s policies or the personal appeal of Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Business cash flow tax would lift investment

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 3-Sep-19

Economist Ross Garnaut has called on the federal government to adopt a business cash flow tax that would incorporate a full deduction for corporate expenditure. He says a full tax write-off for business expenditure provides a significant incentive for investment, and is in line with Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s recent call for companies to boost productivity by increasing capital investment in preference to share buybacks and special dividends. Garnaut and former federal Labor minister Craig Emerson have undertaken economic modelling on a possible switch from the traditional profit-based company tax to a tax based on cash flow.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP