Palmer to lead UAP Senate election bid
BRISBANE, AAP – Mining billionaire Clive Palmer is to attempt a return to federal politics, announcing he will lead his party’s Senate team in the upcoming election. Mr Palmer’s United Australia Party plans to field Senate candidates in every state and territory, with the one-time lower house MP last tasting victory in 2013 when he…
ASX down, Block struggles early on debut
SYDNEY, AAP – US payments giant Block has made its debut on the ASX but the market was broadly weaker after a downturn on Wall Street. Block, which replaces merger partner Afterpay on the ASX, had its chess depositary interests lowered by 0.56 per cent to $176.25 by 1200 AEDT on Thursday. Chess depositary interests…
Chinese port city reports COVID case dip
BEIJING, RAW – The Chinese city of Tianjin has reported fewer COVID-19 cases after conducting mass testing and locking down some areas to curb the highly transmissible Omicron variant. Tianjin, a key port in northern China, reported 18 domestically transmitted cases with confirmed symptoms for Monday, National Health Commission (NHC) data showed on Tuesday. That…
‘Blue carbon’ projects to offset emissions
SYDNEY, AAP – “Blue carbon” is among a range of new options that can earn credits in Australia’s voluntary carbon market. Minister for Industry, Energy and Emissions Reduction Angus Taylor announced on Tuesday that farmers, businesses and industries can benefit from the new methods of offsetting carbon emissions, as part of the Emissions Reduction Fund…
Qld to reopen international border on Sat
BRISBANE, AAP – Queensland will scrap quarantine for twice-vaccinated international travellers from 1am on Saturday. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced that almost all restrictions on vaccinated international arrivals will dumped for the first time since March 2020. She says the date has been set as the state is set to hit a vaccination coverage target of…
Gas-fired ‘con’ banked by net-zero lenders
CANBERRA, AAP – Bankers have been accused of “industrial-scale greenwashing” by financing a huge new gas field. But National Australia Bank and Westpac insist they’re on board with the global push for net-zero emissions. Woodside and BHP signed a $16.5 billion offshore LNG joint venture in November, which will cement another 30 years of gas…
Omicron likely to restrain economic growth
CANBERRA, AAP – Economists will get some clues for Thursday’s crucial labour force figures when payroll jobs data is released for the first half of December. The latest payroll jobs report from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday will cover the fortnight to December 18. Economists expect the strong employment recovery seen in November,…
Wall Street falls as tech stocks drop
NEW YORK CITY, RAW – Wall Street’s main indexes have fallen as big technology stocks were slammed by rising Treasury yields while Goldman Sachs led declines among banks after posting its quarterly profit below expectations. Two-year Treasury yields, which track short-term rate expectations, crossed 1.0 per cent for the first time since February 2020 amid…
Tree changers push NSW land value up $400b
SYDNEY, AAP – “Ski changers” and “tree changers” are being blamed for pushing the price of land in NSW to a record-high peak. Land in the state was valued at $2.2 trillion in the 12 months to July 2021, up from $1.8 trillion – an uptick of 24.8 per cent. The biggest growth was recorded…
Aust shares rolled by rising bond yields
SYDNEY, AAP – A second-half fade for the ASX has left investors with a reminder that rising interest rates could dominate 2022. The Australian market turned from gains to losses on Tuesday as bond yields rose here and abroad. The Australian government 10-year-bond was at 1.93 per cent as investors anticipate the US Federal Reserve…
