Tag Archives: Australia

Iron Ore Slumps to Lowest Since at Least 2009 in China

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“Iron ore retreated to the lowest level in at least six years as a rout in China’s stock markets threatened to hurt demand in the largest buyer just as the biggest producers plan to raise output.  Ore with 62 percent content delivered to Qingdao sank 10 percent to $44.59 a dry metric ton on Wednesday, according to Metal Bulletin Ltd. That’s the lowest price on record dating back to May 2009, the data show. The raw material was until the past several years traded predominantly through annual benchmark prices. Compared with those benchmarks, this would be the lowest since 2005, data compiled by Clarkson Plc show.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-08/iron-ore-collapses-to-record-low-as-commodities-sink-on-china

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As iron ore prices fall 60%, mining companies worldwide risk closure

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“Two small iron ore firms have recently shut mines in Australia because of low prices and Goldman Sachs says half the world’s so-called ‘tier two’ miners are at risk of closure.  Spot iron ore prices have fallen 60 percent in the past year on surging output blamed on overestimates of China’s appetite for imported ore by mega miners BHP, Vale and Rio Tinto. The World Steel Association expects China’s steel production to contract by 1 to 2 percent this year.  BHP and Rio have been able to cut costs more than smaller rivals, leaving them better able to weather low prices.”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/energy-and-resources/bhp-blinks-as-iron-ore-prices-fall-delays-output-boost/article24058795/

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Johnny Depp facing 10 years in prison for taking his dogs to Australia

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“The actor, who is currently filming Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, landed himself in trouble earlier this month when he brought his two Yorkshire terriers to the country on his private jet. He failed to declare them and therefore broke the country’s quarantine laws.  On 25 May, an Australian senate committee was told that if it goes to court, Depp could receive a sentence of up t0 10 years in prison or a maximum fine of AU$340,000 (£172,000). The pilot could also face up to two years behind bars for his role in the situation.  Officials have referred to the case as ‘very serious’.  The story originated when pictures of Depp taking his dogs to the local groomer surfaced on social media.”

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/may/26/johnny-depp-dogs-australia-prison

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Australian banks put brakes on investor lending

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“Under huge public and private pressure from regulators, the big banks are effectively raising interest rates for many new property investors by scrapping or scaling back lucrative discounts routinely offered.  The industry is also considering a tougher stance on deposits, after a subsidiary of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia said investors’ mortgages would get a maximum of 80 per cent of the value of the property – a decision that creates a 20 per cent buffer for the bank if there is a property crash. CLSA banking analyst Brian Johnson said it could lead to a period of no increases in house prices. National house prices rose more than 10 per cent last led by Sydney and Melbourne.”

http://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/banks-put-brakes-on-investor-lending-20150521-gh6imi.html

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As-is Melbourne houses fetch more than $1 million above reserve

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“A Fitzroy North Victorian house in original condition has sold for more than $1 million over the vendor’s reserve price, continuing Melbourne’s crazy property market.  The freestanding four-bedroom house with a heritage overlay at 129 McKean St, Fitzroy North, sold for $2.65 million at the weekend, smashing the vendor’s $1.6 million reserve price. The median price for houses in Fitzroy North has jumped 35.8 per cent over the past five years to $1,010,500, according to latest results by CoreLogic RP Data.”

http://www.news.com.au/finance/real-estate/a-fitzroy-north-property-sells-for-more-than-1-million-beyond-reserve/story-fncq3era-1227359084804

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Central bank seeks to rein in Auckland housing market

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“Governor Graeme Wheeler is using loan restrictions to curb the housing market in Auckland, home to a third of New Zealand’s 4.5 million people, after last month ruling out interest-rate increases as inflation slows to near zero. Auckland house prices rose 16.9 per cent in March from a year earlier, compared to 3.2 per cent in the rest of the country, the RBNZ said today. Investors will be required to have a deposit of at least 30 per cent for any bank loan to buy residential property in the Auckland Council area, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand said in its semi-annual Financial Stability Report in Wellington Wednesday. The proposed new policy would come into force from October 1.”

http://www.afr.com/news/economy/monetary-policy/rbnz-seeks-to-rein-in-auckland-housing-market-20150512-gh0a26

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Auckland nears $1m average house price as experts warn of bubble

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“Small, one–bedroom apartments are selling for $800,000 and delapidated wrecks in barely desirable suburbs are fetching more than $1m.  Expensive land, and restrictions on building new and denser housing, has seen limited new stock come on the market. And a strong economy, record net migration, especially to Auckland, and banks happy to lend money in a market with significant capital gains, has seen people paying over the top of each other. The savage competition in the market has also been blamed for growing xenophobic and anti–Asian attitudes. About 8% of the Auckland market are identifiable cash buyers and likely to be foreigners, while investors are 45%.”

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/may/25/auckland-nears-1m-average-house-price-as-experts-warn-of-property-bubble

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Australian public programming questions value of reading to children

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“‘Evidence shows that the difference between those who get bedtime stories and those who don’t — the difference in their life chances — is bigger than the difference between those who get elite private schooling and those that don’t,’ British academic Adam Swift told ABC presenter Joe Gelonesi.  Swift said parents should be mindful of the advantage provided by bedtime reading.  ‘I don’t think parents reading their children bedtime stories should constantly have in their minds the way that they are unfairly disadvantaging other people’s children, but I think they should have that thought occasionally,’ he said.”

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/reading-to-children-at-bedtime-abc-questions-value-of-time-honoured-practice/story-fni0cx12-1227335151442

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Australia To Start Taxing Bank Deposits

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“The Federal Opposition has accused the Government of breaking an election promise by planning to introduce a tax on bank deposits.  The former Labor Government put forward the policy in 2013 to raise revenue for a fund to protect customers in the event of a banking collapse.  Shadow Assistant Treasurer Andrew Leigh said Treasurer Joe Hockey criticised the proposal at the time. ‘When we put it on the table Joe Hockey said that it was a smash and grab on Australian households just aimed at repairing the budget,’ he said.  The banking industry has raised concerns about a deposit tax, saying it will have to pass the cost back onto customers.”

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-29/australia-start-taxing-bank-deposits

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Pressure to legalise marijuana after Australian boy denied treatment

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“The parents of a three-year-old boy and a Melbourne hospital clashed after doctors stopped administering cannabis oil to the child because of concerns about legal ramifications.  They turned to cannabis oil to treat their son Cooper’s seizures about a year ago, after doctors told them they had no way of stopping them. They said it had been highly effective.  But after at first helping to administer the drug, the ABC said, hospital staff warned [the parents] that if they continued to give Cooper the oil, police would be informed.  [The parents] had their house raided in July after telling Channel Seven’s Sunday Night program about using marijuana oil on Cooper.”

http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2014/oct/06/pressure-builds-to-legalise-medical-marijuana-after-boy-denied-treatment

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