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Gold price jumps; $A, iron ore and Dow rise; WHO announces poorer countries to get 15-minute coronavirus tests as UK reports 4,044 new cases

Source : PortMac.News | Independent :

Source : PortMac.News | Independent | News Story:

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News Summary 29-09-20 | Gold, A$ & Iron Up | WHO 15min Tests
Gold price jumps; $A, iron ore and Dow rise; WHO announces poorer countries to get 15-minute coronavirus tests as UK reports 4,044 new cases

Latest updates on Key Economic Indicators

Australian Dollar: $0.7071 USD (up $0.0042 USD)

Iron Ore Oct Spot Price (SGX): $114.56 USD (up $1.09 USD)

Oil Price (WTI): $40.59 USD (up $0.34 USD)

Gold Price: $1,881.64 (up $20.31 USD)

Dow Jones: 27,584.06 (up 410.10 points)

All changes compared to 7am yesterday.


Rapid coronavirus test which diagnoses COVID-19 in minutes to be rolled out by World Health Organisation

The World Health Organisation wants to roll out 120 million rapid-diagnostic coronavirus tests to help lower-income countries make up ground in a testing gap with richer countries — even if it is not fully funded yet.

At $US5 ($7) apiece, the program initially requires $US600 million in funding and will start as early as next month.

The rapid tests look for antigens, or proteins, found on the surface of the virus.

They are generally considered less accurate — though much faster — than higher-grade genetic tests, known as PCR tests, which are used in many wealthier nations.

Those tests require processing with specialty lab equipment and chemicals. They typically take several days to deliver results to patients.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hailed the program as "good news" in the fight against COVID-19.

"These tests provide reliable results in approximately 15 to 30 minutes, rather than hours or days, at a lower price with less sophisticated equipment," he said.

"This will enable the expansion of testing, particularly in hard-to-reach areas that do not have lab facilities or enough trained health workers to carry out PCR tests.

"We have an agreement, we have seed funding and now we need the full amount of funds to buy these tests."

Tests a valuable tool, but no 'silver bullet'

Catharina Boehme, chief executive of a non-profit group called the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics, said the tests would be rolled out in 20 African countries and would rely on the support of health groups.

She said the diagnostic tests would be provided by SD Biosensor and Abbott.

Peter Sands, the executive director of the Global Fund, a partnership that works to end epidemics, said it would make an initial $US50 million available from its COVID-19 response mechanism.

He said the tests will be a "significant step" to help contain and combat the coronavirus.

"They're not a silver bullet, but hugely valuable as a complement to PCR tests, since although they are less accurate, they're much faster, cheaper and don't require a lab," he said.

Many rich countries have also faced problems rolling out accurate tests, and testing itself is no panacea.

Countries like France and the United States have all faced backlogs and hiccups at times, and rapid tests in the United Kingdom and Spain turned out to be inaccurate.

But rolling out testing in poorer countries aims to help healthcare workers identify where the virus is circulating so they can contain it.


$800m for business in digital push

The Australian Financial Review - Page 1 & 6 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Phillip Coorey - PortMac.News Summary

Measures to assist businesses to access online government services will be a key focus of a $800m package to be announced by Prime Minister Scott Morrison on 29 September.

About $420m will be allocated to the creation of a new "super business registry", which will combine the Australian Business Register and 31 separate registers.

The government will also spend $257m on expanding its Digital Identity Program, which will be integrated with the Director Identification Number. The measures are expected to help combat corporate and practices such as 'phoenixing'. There will also be funding for initiatives aimed at helping businesses to adapt to technology.


Hotel quarantine a lethal litany of errors

Herald Sun - Page 1 & 6 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Ellen Whinnett - PortMac.News Summary

Victoria's Opposition Leader Michael O'Brien has called on Premier Daniel Andrews to resign in the wake of damning closing submissions to the inquiry into the state's hotel quarantine program.

Ben Ihle, counsel assisting the inquiry, said the failed program is responsible for 768 deaths to date and 18,418 coronavirus cases statewide. He added that rather than protecting the community from COVID-19, the quarantine program became a 'seeding ground' for the coronavirus.

The inquiry was also told that the program's failure was due to a series of bureaucratic actions and inactions, rather than a single person or action.


Former Vic heath minister Mikakos claims aim is 'zero cases'

Herald Sun - Page 9 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Shannon Deery, Tom Minear, Tamsin Rose - PortMac.News Summary

Premier Daniel Andrews has reiterated that the Victorian government's COVID-19 strategy is based on suppression rather than eradication.

He has emphasised that the suppression strategy was a decision of the national cabinet. However, just days after resigning from the health portfolio and parliament, Jenny Mikakos has tweeted that Victoria is "well on the way to eradication".

The state recorded five new coronavirus cases on 28 September, while Melbourne's 14-day average of new cases has fallen to 20.3. Victoria's death toll from COVID-19 has risen by three to 787; the national toll is now 875, and the global toll has passed one million.


Mask crackdown 'makes no sense'

The Australian Financial Review - Page 5 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Patrick Durkin, Natasha Gillezeau - PortMac.News Summary

Health experts have criticised Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews after he stated that wearing face masks will remain mandatory for the foreseeable future, and that face coverings such as scarfs and bandanas will no longer be allowed.

Infectious diseases physician Peter Collignon says face masks make sense if there is a lot of community transmission of COVID-19, but that they are low down in terms of things that have benefits.

Deakin University's chair of epidemiology Catherine Bennett says the mandatory wearing of face masks should only apply in risky situations. She notes that there are currently zero cases of mystery transmission.


Kiwis for Christmas: State-by-state travel bubble plan progresses

The Australian Financial Review - Page 4 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Tom McIlroy - PortMac.News Summary

Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham says the federal government would like to establish a travel bubble with New Zealand by late 2020.

Plans for an Australia-wide bubble were put on hold due to the second wave of COVID-19 in Victoria.

The government is now looking at restricting the proposed trans-Tasman bubble to states that have no community transmission, with people who live in areas that are designated as coronavirus 'hotspots' to be barred from travelling to NZ.

The push to re-open borders between the two nations has been welcomed by NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Foreign Minister Winston Peters.


Jobs aplenty in WA if border were open

The Australian Financial Review - Page 6 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by John Kehoe, Brad Thompson - PortMac.News Summary

The Western Australian government is under pressure to relax its hard border closure due to growing indications of a skilled labour shortage in the state.

The construction, mining and agricultural sectors are amongst those which are finding it hard to secure skilled workers as the state's borders remain closed due to COVID-19.

Meanwhile, data from the National Skills Commission shows that job vacancies in WA have increased by 10.6 per cent at a time when most states have experienced a sharp decline in vacancies.


Preference flows favour Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp

Herald Sun - Page Online : 29 September 2020 - Original article by John Masanauskas - PortMac.News Summary

Melbourne Lord Mayor candidate and leading local business person Gary Morgan will direct his preferences to incumbent Sally Capp in the upcoming Melbourne City Council election.

Capp has also secured the preferences of Labor, while the Greens will allocate their preferences to the team of Deputy Lord Mayor Arron Wood and Lisa Teh.

A spokesman for Capp says her team has done no deals and it has chosen people rather than parties. Meanwhile, Capp has announced that she will extend a freeze on council rate increases until 2021-22 if she is re-elected.


Kelty urges lifting super to 15pc to fund aging society

The Australian Financial Review - Page 9 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Michael Roddan - PortMac.News Summary

Former ACTU secretary Bill Kelty has urged the federal government to press ahead with the legislated increase in the superannuation guarantee from 9.5 per cent to 12 per cent.

Kelty has also told a conference hosted by the ACTU that serious consideration should be given to increasing it to 15 per cent in order to take into account the fact that more Australians are living into their 80s and 90s.

Labor and the union movement support the legislated increase, but organisations such as the Grattan Institute contend that it is not necessary.


PM's foreign veto push 'risks UK uni deals'

The Australian - Page 6 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Richard Ferguson - PortMac.News Summary

Prime Minister Scott Morrison wants to be able to scrutinise state, local government and university deals with other countries to ensure that they align with the national interest.

The Russell Group of UK universities, whose members include Oxford and Cambridge, has expressed concern about Morrison's proposed bill in a submission to a parliamentary inquiry.

Russell Group CEO Tim Bradshaw says he is very concerned about the impact that the bill could have on the capacity of its members to engage with Australian universities; the UK is Australia's third biggest research partner after China and the US.


Supply chains break as wharf war flares

The Australian Financial Review - Page 3 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by David Marin-Guzman - PortMac.News Summary

The federal government will support Patrick's bid to have the Fair Work Commission stop protected industrial action by stevedores at ports in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Fremantle.

Patrick has stated in its application to the FWC that each day of lost operations costs the equivalent of 4.4 per cent of daily gross national product, while federal Attorney General Christian Porter says it is "unforgiveable" that the Maritime Union of Australia is taking industrial action in pursuit of wage increases of six per cent in the middle of a recession.


Clean coal finds moment in the sun

The Australian Financial Review - Page 36 & 37 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Peter Ker - PortMac.News Summary

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change stated in 2018 that technologies that can remove carbon from the atmosphere will be needed if the goals of the 2015 Paris climate agreement are to be met.

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is one such technology, and it has recently received a lot of support from policymakers.

Energy Minister Angus Taylor has named CCS as one of the federal government's five priority 'low-emission technologies', while the European Union has included CCS as one of the technologies eligible for funding via its EUR10 billion ($16.5 billion) emissions reduction 'innovation' fund.


Historic deficit looms, but pressure is off Frydenberg

The Australian - Page 10 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Adam Creighton - PortMac.News Summary

The federal government's 2020 Budget will be one of the easiest to prepare, given that there is no longer any need for spending constraints as a return to a surplus is now firmly on the backburner.

With the nation facing the prospect of the biggest deficit since 1944, the government will be able to justify every new spending measure as a response to the crisis and the need to create jobs.

However, rather than borrowing more money to throw at households and businesses, the government should pursue measures such as bringing forward legislated income tax cuts and abolishing regulations that make it difficult to start a business and hire people.


Shares end flat in mixed trading

The Australian - Page 20 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Samantha Bailey - PortMac.News Summary

The Australian sharemarket lost ground on 28 September, with the S&P/ASX 200 easing 0.21 per cent to close at 5,952.3 points.

Rio Tinto was down 1.5 per cent at $96.55, the ANZ Bank shed 1.3 per cent to end the session at $17.70 and A2 Milk finished 11.4 per cent lower at $15.20. However, Afterpay rose five per cent to $79.80 and Qantas was up 6.4 per cent at $4.13.


ANZ to claw back funds in redraw glitch

The Australian Financial Review - Page 12 & 24 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by James Frost - PortMac.News Summary

The ANZ Bank has identified around 200,000 accounts with incorrect loan redraw balances, with the inflated balances said to be caused by an "underlying system and manual processing issue".

ANZ has written to affected customers to advise them of the correct balance, and they are being warned not to overdraw their accounts until the appropriate adjustment has been made.

The average customer will have their redraw reduced by $264, but ANZ has identified a group of 131 customers who will have their balances adjusted by more than $10,000 each.


Big tobacco giving retailers cash and international trips to promote products, study finds

The Guardian Australia - Page Online : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Melissa Davey - PortMac.News Summary

A spokesman for federal health minister Greg Hunt has expressed concerns about the findings of a study by the University of Sydney.

The University interviewed 10 former employees of tobacco companies in Australia, with the researchers being told how tobacco companies give retailers cash payments and take retail staff on all-expenses-paid overseas trips, in return for promoting their products to customers and to give them more prominent shelf space.

Hunt's spokesman said the tactics highlighted in the study indicate tobacco companies are trying to undermine Australia's tobacco policy and overall public health.


Magazine sales pick up as restrictions ease

The Australian - Page 15 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Lilly Vitorovich - PortMac.News Summary

Are Media CEO Brendon Hill says the magazine publisher's subscriptions have increased by eight per cent year-on-year since March.

He adds that the COVID-19 pandemic is continuing to weigh on advertising revenue at the company, which was formerly known as Bauer Media.

Mercury Capital acquired the business earlier in 2020, just months after Bauer bought key rival Pacific Magazines. Are Media now publishes 35 magazines in Australia and employees about 700 people.


Treasury asked to probe Rio's Bougainville history

The Australian Financial Review - Page 15 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by Peter Ker - PortMac.News Summary

Bougainville residents have called on Rio Tinto to create a fund for the rehabilitation of the Panguna copper mine, which has been idle since a civil war in 1989.

They are also seeking environmental reparations.

Rio Tinto staff have not been to the mine since 1990 because of the civil war and ongoing safety concerns, while the resources group cut its ties with the mine in 2016.

To press their case against Rio Tinto to take appropriate action on the mine, Bougainville residents have lodged a complaint with the Australian National Contact Point for the OECD Guidelines, claiming that Rio's management of the mine has breached OECD standards.


Tesla deal sends lithium minnow up 90 per cent

The Australian Financial Review - Page 14 : 29 September 2020 - Original article by James Fernyhough - PortMac.News Summary

Piedmont Lithium has struck a five-year deal to supply lithium ore to Tesla.

The electric car maker will take one-third of the spodumene concentrate that Piedmont expects to produce at its North Carolina mine over the next five years.

CEO and president Keith Phillips has indicated that Piedmont may increase production in response to the deal; the mine was originally slated to produce 160,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate a year for the next five years.

Piedmont is based in the US, but it is listed on the Australian sharemarket.


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