Petrol demand may never recover: report
NEW YORK, AP – The world’s once-insatiable demand for petrol is unlikely to recover to pre-pandemic levels, a report from the International Energy Agency says. Petrol use cratered during the pandemic as cities shut down and many people began working from home, a trend that will likely continue as the COVID-19 crisis eases. Many governments…
Insurance solution for stormy premiums
TOWNSVILLE, AAP – Up to a quarter of houses across north Queensland are uninsured because of storm-inspired premiums three times the price of the rest of Australia. Floods and cyclones are among the emergency events which have flattened and damaged homes, and as a result, insurance companies have hiked the cost of annual cover. “I…
Using super for home deposits ‘a disaster’
CANBERRA, AAP – The federal government is being urged to commission an independent review into housing affordability against the backdrop of calls from some backbench MPs that superannuation savings should be used to buy a home. An analysis by the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia found that using super for housing would put significant…
World-first trial exports Aussie hydrogen
CANBERRA, AAP – Australian-made hydrogen will be exported to Japan under a world-first trial taking a big step forward for the emerging industry. The Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain projects will see hydrogen made from coal in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley. This is not the ‘green’ hydrogen environmentalists have been calling for, but the project will aim…
Costello hopes RBA wrong on rate timing
CANBERRA, AAP – Peter Costello hopes the Australian economy won’t still need a record low cash rate in 2024, as repeatedly flagged by the Reserve Bank. Australia’s longest-serving treasurer understands RBA governor Philip Lowe is trying to reassure everybody the central bank will provide support as long as it is needed. “I like to hope…
QBE finds new leader at UK insurer
SYDNEY, AAP – Insurer QBE has named the boss of UK insurer Beazley, Andrew Horton, as its next chief executive. After the market closed on Wednesday, the insurer said Mr Horton would join after 13 years running the UK-listed insurer, which trades across most continents. QBE chair Mike Wilkins said Mr Horton had a deep…
Qantas, Rex jostle for routes and handouts
CANBERRA, AAP – Qantas and regional Rex Airlines know JobKeeper will end this month, but have argued for further handouts to see them through COVID uncertainty. Qantas took drastic action to cut its workforce, grounded most of its fleet and last week posted a record loss of more than $1 billion for the first half…
Frydenberg slams Qld govt over stimulus
BRISBANE, AAP – Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has attacked the Queensland premier over coronavirus stimulus amid a row over the extension of JobKeeper for the tourism industry. Annastacia Palaszczuk has been campaigning for an extension of the wage subsidy past the March cut-off for industries hit by international border closures. The NSW coalition government has…
Government mulling levy hike for aged care
CANBERRA, AAP – The Morrison government has left the door open to a tax increase to find billions of dollars needed to fix Australia’s besieged aged care system. But coalition backbenchers are lukewarm on asking taxpayers to pick up the bill, which looms as crucial to repairing the deep problems facing older Australians. A damning…
NSW lifting long ban on GM crops
SYDNEY, AAP – NSW is lifting its ban on genetically modified crops, in a move expected to deliver a multi-billion-dollar boost to primary industry. Agriculture Minister Adam Marshall said the 18-year moratorium on GM crops would lapse on July 1. He expects the state’s farming sector to embrace GM technologies, opening the way for billions…
