Australia & New Zealand
BHP's Kloppers Winning in War to End Annual Price Talks With Steelmakers Marius Kloppers, chief executive
officer of BHP Billiton Ltd., is winning his war on how the
steel industry buys its raw materials.
Australians Work Longer Hours, May Prompt Higher Peak in Key Lending Rate The biggest expansion of Australian
working hours since 1998 may cause job gains to reaccelerate in
coming months, forcing the central bank to raise interest rates
higher than what Governor Glenn Stevens calls a neutral level.
New Zealand May Trail Asia Pacific in Raising Rates Amid Weak Recovery New Zealand’s central bank may be
one of the last in the Asia-Pacific region to raise interest
rates this year due to a “sluggish” economic recovery.
Warehouse Group First-Half Net Income Rises 17% Amid `Patchy' Spending Warehouse Group Ltd., New Zealand’s
largest discount retailer, reported a 17 percent rise in first-
half profit, reflecting the cost of store closures a year
earlier.
New Zealand January Retail Sales Rise 0.8% as Consumer Confidence Improves New Zealand retail sales increased
for the fifth time in six months in January as consumer
confidence rose and stores dropped prices to attract customers
during their summer vacation.
Japan, Australia Planning Victoria Coal Gasification Project, Nikkei Says Japan and Australia will agree as
early as next month on a venture to turn low-quality coal into
natural gas, Nikkei English News reported, without saying where
it got the information. The countries may build a trial plant in
Australia’s Victoria state in the year ending March 2012, Nikkei
said.
New Zealand Dollar Declines on Central Bank Signal of Slower Stimulus Exit The New Zealand dollar fell against
all of its 16 most-traded counterparts as the central bank
signaled a slower exit from economic stimulus measures.
New Zealand House Price Index, Property Sales Increased in February New Zealand house prices rose 0.4
percent in February from January, according to an index
published by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand Inc.
CBH Resources Shares Halted Before Possible Change of Control Transaction CBH Resources Ltd. shares were
halted from trading in Sydney today after the company said it
received a proposal from a party which may lead to a change of
control transaction. CBH Resources is considering its response
to the proposal.
BHP, Rio, Miners Plan Mid-Year Queensland Rail Bid, Financial Review Says BHP Billiton Ltd., Rio Tinto Group
are among a group of coalminers in Australia that will probably
make a bid for Queensland’s coal rail network by the middle of
the year, the Australian Financial Review reported. The group
has asked to meet Queensland Premier Anna Bligh in the next week
to express concerns about the state’s plans to list the network
by the end of 2010, the newspaper said.
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd Says Local Banks Have Been Gouging Australian Prime Minister Kevin
Rudd said the nation’s banks have been ‘gouging.’ He made the
comments today on the Seven Network’s Sunrise television
program.
Global Airline Loss Estimate Cut by 50% on Rapid Rebound in Travel Demand Airlines worldwide will lose a
collective $2.8 billion in 2010, half the previous forecast, as
emerging markets lead a rebound in traffic, the International
Air Transport Association said.
Senate Approves Plan to Transfer Some ASX Powers to Securities Regulator Australia approved the transfer of
some ASX Ltd. supervisory powers to the nation’s securities
regulator, paving the way for rival exchanges.
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