Business News

Macquarie Research Equities (MRE) have conducted an extensive analysis of stocks that are at risk of earnings downgrades due to increasing cost pressures. While softer revenues are a problem, the real concern lies with accelerating cost growth that is effectively eating into company margins. Against this backdrop, MRE believe that rising costs present an increasing risk to company Earning Per Share (EPS) growth forecasts for FY06.

A flat session on Wall Street last night as investors wait for tomorrow’s decision on US interest rates has prompted weakness on the Australian market. The All Ords is currently 22.2 points softer to an intraday level of 4540.

A pull-back in base metals overnight has inspired weakness in BHP. Traders prompted by the dip in the stock bought upside leveraging to a bounce using BHPIM3 Mar06 $21.00 Instalment, BHPDMA Jun06 $21.50 Instalment and BHPIM2 Mar06 $19.00 Instalment.

A little-known millionaire has donated $30 million towards finding a cure for melanoma and hopes other rich Australians will follow his act by giving money to charity.

The money donated by Sydney businessman Greg Poche, who built the private freight company Star Track Express, is believed to be the largest single public charitable donation by an individual, a Sydney newspaper reported.

It will be put towards a new Sydney Melanoma Unit at North Sydney's Mater Hospital.

Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University, who is also director of the United Nations Millennium Project, says in a talk he gave in Beijing that there are four stages of economic development: pre-commercial, commercial, industrial and knowledge. Thus a country has to make three transformations to get to the wealthiest stage and can get trapped at any of them.

Most African countries are pre-commercial because the rural economy is so isolated from the urban economy that there's little exchange between the two and so little scope for exploiting economies of scale.

Sydney real estate property prices have fallen 10 per cent since the boom ended in late 2003 - and by 2.3 per cent in the last quarter - a Bureau of Statistics survey has revealed, suggesting the market slump is deeper, more protracted and from a lower peak than previously thought.

The downturn is creating opportunities for potential first-home buyers and bargain hunters, but a seller who bought a property in the past three years is likely to lose money if forced to sell, after stamp duty and real estate costs.

Today is OzJet's first day of commercial flights and as of 24 hours ago the fledging carrier had sold some seats for its peak morning and evening flights.

But next week it doesn't have a single booking for flights in the middle of the day.

There are more cabin staff than customers, in fact.

"I'm not stupid - if it's not being supported we'd take a view after six months," is all Mr Stoddart would say on how long he would cover the airline if bookings did not pick up.

Australia's wealthiest people are paying only 25 per cent of their income in tax and are easily avoiding the top personal rate of 47c in the dollar.

The very rich pay less than a third of the tax paid by the nation's highest-paid workers - $28,000 versus $92,000 a year - because they use their investments to minimise income and claim tax breaks not available to regular workers.

The Coalition Government says that only 3 per cent of taxpayers, with taxable incomes above $125,000, will face the top marginal rate of 47c when the thresholds are lifted again on July 1 next year.