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Media bosses in dark on charges

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 4 : 4-Jul-19

Attorney-General Christian Porter and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher held talks with media industry representatives on 3 July. The meeting failed to ease the media sector’s concerns about Australian Federal Police raids on the ABC’s Sydney office and the home of a News Corp Australia journalist in early June, and whether journalists will face prosecution as a result of the raids. Media executives have also expressed reservations about the government’s plans for the parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security to hold an inquiry into press freedom.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS), FREE TV AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY JOINT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CENTRE ALLIANCE

Press freedom probe backed

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Original article by Rosie Lewis, Zoe Samios
The Australian – Page: 2 : 3-Jul-19

The parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security will undertake an inquiry into the impact of police and intelligence agencies’ powers on freedom of the press. The inquiry was approved by federal cabinet on 2 July, and follows the recent police raids on the ABC’s offices and the home of a News Corp Australia journalist. Labor proposes to establish a separate inquiry into press freedom and the public’s right to know, while media companies advocate changes to laws affecting freedom of the press rather than a parliamentary inquiry.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY JOINT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Tax fight left rare earths miner on the brink

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 1-Jul-19

Northern Minerals has spent $210m to date on its Browns Range rare earths project in Western Australia’s East Kimberley region. MD George Bauk says a dispute with the Australian Tax Office over a $10.8m research and development tax rebate nearly saw the company collapse in early 2019. The ATO also demanded that Northern Minerals repay $13.4m worth of previous R&D rebates. Bauk maintains that the Browns Range processing plant is an R&D site, as the technology it uses is still being developed and improved.

CORPORATES
NORTHERN MINERALS LIMITED – ASX NTU, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, LYNAS CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX LYC, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES

Australia’s lithium boom underwhelms

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 28-Jun-19

Lithium prices have fallen in 2019 as analysts had predicted, but not necessarily just for the reason that they had forecast. Analysts had suggested that a surge in supply would "crush" lithium prices, but reduced demand in China and a delay in developing and commissioning new capacity in China for converting Australia’s spodumene concentrate into battery-grade lithium have also been cited as factors. Australian lithium exports are certainly growing more slowly than expected.

CORPORATES
GALAXY RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX GXY, PILBARA MINERALS LIMITED – ASX PLS, ALLIANCE MINERAL ASSETS LIMITED – ASX A40, ALTURA MINING LIMITED – ASX AJM, OROCOBRE LIMITED – ASX ORE

Security laws used to avoid scrutiny, say media bosses

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 27-Jun-19

News Corp Australasia chairman Michael Miller, Nine Entertainment CEO Hugh Marks and ABC MD David Anderson jointly addressed the National Press Club on 26 June. They discussed issues such as the Australian Federal Police’s recent media raids, the impact of national security laws on freedom of the press and the public’s right to know, and the need for an overhaul of defamation laws. Miller suggested that the AFP raids on the ABC’s Sydney office and the home of News Corp journalist Annika Smethurst constituted intimidation rather than investigation.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA), AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Media leaders united in fight for public’s right to know

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Original article by Zoe Samios
The Australian – Page: 3 : 26-Jun-19

Freedom of the press and the public’s right to know will be the key thrust of a joint address to the National Press Club by three of Australia’s top media executives on 26 June. The joint appearance of News Corp Australasia chairman Michael Miller, Nine Entertainment Company CEO Hugh Marks and ABC MD David Anderson follows the recent police raids on the offices of the public broadcaster and the home of News Corp journalist Annika Smethurst.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA), HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

News takes AFP raid fight to High Court

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Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 6 : 25-Jun-19

The ABC and News Corp Australia will both challenge the constitutional validity of the Australian Federal Police’s recent media raids. The ABC will ask the Federal Court to rule that the AFP’s warrant was invalid on a number of grounds, including that it infringed the public broadcaster’s implied right of political communication. News Corp Australia will use similar arguments in the High Court; it will also seek confirmation from the AFP that it is no longer investigating the media group itself or journalist Annika Smethurst.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCE, AUSTRALIAN SIGNALS DIRECTORATE

Rivals unite on law reform

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Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 24 : 24-Jun-19

News Corp Australasia executive chairman Michael Miller, ABC MD David Anderson and Nine Entertainment Company CEO Hugh Marks will jointly address the National Press Club on 26 June. They will call for legislative reforms to ensure freedom of the press and the public’s right to know. The joint speech follows the recent police raids on the ABC’s Sydney offices and the home of a News Corp journalist. The ABC is set to launch a legal challenge to the Australian Federal Police raids, while News Corp is still considering its legal options.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA), AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE

Retail the weakest part of the economy, RBA warns

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 24-Jun-19

The Reserve Bank of Australia has released a report which highlights the tough trading environment for the retail sector. The central bank’s June bulletin notes that retailers’ profit margins are being hit by price competition, while profitability in the sector may be at risk if retailers seek to boost market share by selling products at a loss. The net margins of food retailers have fallen below five per cent, compared with more than seven per cent in 2009. There has also been a sharp decline in the net margins of non-food retailers over this period.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, COSTCO WHOLESALE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ZARA, UNIQLO AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Harris Scarfe highest for discount department store satisfaction

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 24-Jun-19

New research from Roy Morgan shows that Harris Scarfe is Australia’s leading discount department store, with a customer satisfaction rating of 90.1%, ahead of Kmart on 88.9% and Best & Less on 88.7%. The biggest improvement over the year to April came from Harris Scarfe (up 6.9% points). The other improvers were Best & Less (up 4.1% points), Big W (up 2.1% points), Costco (up 1.5% points) and Kmart (up 0.8% points). These are the latest results from Roy Morgan’s Discount Department Store Satisfaction Report, which is based on in-depth personal interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 Australians per annum in their own homes, including over 9,000 interviews with people who shop at a discount department store in an average four weeks.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, HARRIS SCARFE HOLDINGS LIMITED, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BEST AND LESS PTY LTD, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES, COSTCO WHOLESALE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD