Latest updates on Key Economic Indicators

Australian Dollar: $0.7747 USD (up $0.0039 USD)

Iron Ore Apr Spot Price (SGX): $151.70 USD (down $1.35 USD

Oil Price (WTI): $61.47 USD (up $0.05 USD)

Gold Price: $1,739.36 (down $5.95 USD)

Bitcoin: $56,009.64 USD (down 2.78% in last 24 hours)

Dow Jones: 32,731.20 (up 103.23 on Friday's close)

All changes compared to 7am yesterday.

Downpour a $2bn disaster

The Australian - Page 1 & 4 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Stephen Rice - PortMac.News Summary

More than 30 local government areas in New South Wales have been declared natural disaster zones and the Insurance Council of Australia has issued a 'Catastrophe' declaration for large parts of the state.

Some 9,500 insurance claims have been submitted to date, and the flood's damages bill is estimated to have topped $2bn.

The Bureau of Meteorology has warned of the potential for torrential rain in the next 48 hours, and the federal government has put Australian Defence Force personnel on standby to provide assistance.

Meanwhile, the state government has been urged to halt residential development on known flood plains such as the Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley.

There is also concern about flash flooding in some parts of Queensland.

Federal MPs back Uyghur motion

abc.net au - Page Online : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Stephen Dziedzic - PortMac.News Summary

Labor MP Mike Freelander claims the Chinese Communist Party seems determined to erase the culture of the Uyghur people.

Freelander was a number of MPs from all sides of politics to speak in favour of a motion by Liberal MP Kevin Andrews on 22 March that expressed "Abhorrence" at "Systematic" breaches of human rights in China, particularly in regard to ethnic minorities.

Freelander claimed that what was happening to the Uyghurs in China was similar to the Jews in Germany in the 1930s, while Liberal National Party MP George Christensen directly accused the Chinese government of "Systematic genocide".

US, EU, Britain & Canada sanction Chinese officials for Uighur abuses

Beijing issued a swift reprisal following the sanctions on Monday, blacklisting European politicians, diplomats and think tanks, including families, and banning their businesses from trading with China.

The United States, the European Union, Britain and Canada imposed sanctions on Chinese officials on Monday for human rights abuses in Xinjiang, in the first such coordinated Western action against Beijing under new US President Joe Biden.

Beijing hit back immediately with punitive measures against the EU that appeared to be broader, blacklisting European politicians, diplomats and think tanks, including families, and banning their businesses from trading with China.

Western governments are seeking to hold Beijing accountable for mass detentions of Muslim Uighurs in northwestern China.

"Amid growing international condemnation, (China) continues to commit genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in statement ahead of meetings with EU and NATO ministers in Brussels this week.

Canada's foreign ministry said: "Mounting evidence points to systemic, state-led human rights violations by Chinese authorities."

Glady's Ex. Daryl Maguire faces NSW corruption charges

The Guardian Australia - Page Online : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Anne Davies - PortMac.News Summary

The New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption has released the findings of its Operation Dasha inquiry into planning processes within Canterbury Council.

It has recommended former Liberal MP Daryl Maguire face charges for giving false evidence at the inquiry, which dealt with serious corruption within the council, as well as recommending charges be laid against four former councillors.

Phone taps used in the Operation Dasha inquiry have resulted in a second corruption inquiry, Operation Keppel, that could see Maguire face further charges.

The phone taps revealed that Maguire was the secret ex-boyfriend of NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian.

Coalition adviser sacked over  'Solo sex' allegations

The Guardian Australia - Page Online : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Paul Karp, Katherine Murphy - PortMac.News Summary

A federal government adviser has been sacked following claims that a number of male Coalition staffers shared images of them masturbating on female MPs' desks.

Shadow women's minister Tanya Plibersek has described the allegations as "Revolting" and "Extraordinary", while Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the claims are "Disgusting and Sickening" and the behaviour is "Totally unacceptable".

The allegations come at a time when the workplace culture at Parliament House is already under heavy scrutiny.

AstraZeneca vaccine 79% effective with no increased blood clot risk

The Guardian - Page Online : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Sarah Boseley - PortMac.News Summary

AstraZeneca says data from a large-scale US trial of its COVID-19 vaccine shows that it is 79% effective at preventing symptomatic COVID-19 and fully effective in stopping severe disease and hospitalisation.

The company has also advised a review of the US trial data has concluded that there was no increased risk of blood clots among the 21,583 participants who received at least one dose of the vaccine.

AstraZeneca will now seek emergency approval for its vaccine to be used in the US. Many European nations have resumed using the AstraZeneca vaccine after putting the rollout on hold due to concerns about blood clotting.

Rollout of AstraZeneca vaccine remains unclear

The Australian Financial Review - Page 2 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Tom McIlroy - PortMac.News Summary

Some 281,500 Australians have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine since the rollout began a month ago.

This is well below the federal government's now-abandoned target of inoculating four million people by the end of March.

Phase 1B of the rollout will be boosted by the addition of locally-made doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says one million AstraZeneca doses will eventually be available each week, although he cannot say when this will be reached.

No new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases have been reported nationwide in the last 24 hours, but there are 10 new cases in hotel quarantine.

Christian Porter back to work on full $370,000 salary

The Guardian Australia - Page Online : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Paul Karp - PortMac.News Summary

The federal government has not yet received legal advice about the duties that Attorney-General Christian Porter will have to delegate when he returns to work.

Porter's annual salary of $370,000 is unlikely to be affected; Finance Minister Simon Birmingham says he is not aware of any provision for a minister's salary to be varied if they cannot perform some duties because of a potential conflict of interests.

Porter' defamation action against the ABC will require him to be recused from all decisions regarding both the public broadcaster and the Federal Court, which will hear the case.

Crossbenchers and IR club sink sensible reform

The Australian - Page 11 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Judith Sloan - PortMac.News Summary

The fact that most of the federal government's industrial relations omnibus bill was rejected by the Senate may prove to be a Pyrrhic victory for the union movement.

The unions had supported some aspects of the bill which have been defeated, such as tougher penalties for wage theft, industry awards simplification and faster certification of enterprise agreements.

Meanwhile, getting the changes to casual work through the upper house has been a major win for the government, as well as the small business sector.

Fair Work position for Mirabella

The Australian Financial Review - Page 3 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Phillip Coorey - PortMac.News Summary

Shadow industrial relations minister Tony Burke has criticised the federal government's decision to appoint former Liberal MP Sophie Mirabella to the Fair Work Commission.

Burke says it is a "Blatantly political appointment" that will both "Stack" and discredit the FWC.

The cabinet has yet to endorse Mirabella's appointment, and it is not yet known if she will be a commissioner or a deputy commissioner.

Just 17 of the FWC's current 39 commissioners were appointed by the former Labor government.

Be warned: WFH spells white-collar job losses

The Australian - Page 11 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Adam Creighton - PortMac.News Summary

White-collar workers who have been working from home during the pandemic and who are reluctant to return to the office may want to re-consider their reluctance.

They could find that their continued absence will make it easier for their manager to replace them with someone who can do the same job in another country for a much lower wage.

A recent article in the 'Harvard Business Review' claimed that the pandemic has made executives more open to the idea of work from anywhere for some or all of their workforce.

Health, hospitality jobs safe bet

The Australian - Page 7 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Patrick Commins - PortMac.News Summary

The National Skills Commission's latest report forecasts that total employment will rise by 991,600 (7.8%) by November 2025.

Manufacturing and media/telecommunications are the only two sectors that are expected to have fewer jobs over the next five years.

The NSC has identified healthcare and social assistance as sectors that will record strong growth in jobs.

Others include hospitality; professional, scientific and technical services; and fashion, industrial and jewellery design.

Subs builder agrees to terms of local content

The Australian - Page 7 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Greg Sheridan - PortMac.News Summary

France-based Naval Group is said to be poised to sign a local content agreement with the federal government regarding its contract to build a new fleet of submarines.

The initial stages of the project will include less than 60% local content, but this will be progressively ramped up during each phase of the long-term contract; the overall level of local content is slated to exceed the target figure by the time the final submarine is delivered.

Naval Group CEO Pierre-Eric Pommellet says the first vessel could be in service by 2034.

AUSTRAC chief draws a line under the drug cartel saga

The Australian Financial Review - Page 2 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by James Frost - PortMac.News Summary

AUSTRAC CEO Nicole Rose has told Senate estimates that nine Australian banks that got caught up in a money laundering operation involving drug cartels that saw $500 million in drug money pass through their systems were not aware that they were being exploited.

Commenting on the sequence of events that saw AUSTRAC inflate the value of transfers being made by the Vatican into Australia from $10 million to $2.3 billion, Rose described the episode as "Disappointing", while she had high praise for the inter-agency and international co-operation that resulted in the money laundering scheme being disrupted.

Unconscionable conduct ruling expands ACCC clout

The Australian Financial Review - Page 19 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Max Mason - PortMac.News Summary

A full court of the Federal Court recently found that Quantum Housing Group breached Australian Consumer Law and engaged in unconscionable conduct in its dealings with investors concerning the National Rental Affordability Scheme.

In making its decision, the Court upheld an appeal by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, and the Courts' ruling has been welcomed by ACCC chair Rod Sims.

Sims says the ruling is "Hugely important" for both consumers and small businesses, and that big businesses must be very careful about how they engage with smaller entities.

Probe into LNP's secretive developer donation dinners

The Australian - Page 1 & 4 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Michael McKenna, Sarah Elks - PortMac.News Summary

The Queensland Election Commission has launched an investigation into a number of Liberal National Party dinners that were attended by property developers, who are banned from making donations to political parties.

One of the dinners in question was attended by federal Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, with guests charged $900, with $1,000 being the donation declaration threshold.

Another dinner under investigation was held in the cellar dining room of Queensland's Parliament House, with attendees including then opposition leader Deb Frecklington and retirement village owners Adrian and Peter Puljich.

Although no property developer made donations on the day of the dinner, one was made by a company whose owner has links with Adrian Puljich, and LNP sources have stated the donation is somewhat of a mystery.

Property gems put sparkle in Crown takeover play

The Australian - Page 13 & 17 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Ben Wilmot - PortMac.News Summary

Crown Resorts' impressive property portfolio may be a key attraction for private equity suitor Blackstone.

The US firm is one of the world's biggest property investors, and Crown's casinos and associated hotel are valued at about $5.2bn in total.

The value that investors assign to Crown's property portfolio will be a major factor in determining the price that Blackstone with have to pay for Crown, given that its takeover offer values the entire company at $8bn.

Aldi cracks $10bn sales as expansion continues

The Australian - Page 13 & 16 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Eli Greenblat - PortMac.News Summary

Aldi Australia's CEO Tom Daunt says the German-owned supermarket group has "Dramatically changed the retail landscape" since it entered the local market 20 years ago.

Aldi estimates that Australian consumers have saved some $6.6bn in total over this time, due to its low prices and the competitive pressure it has put on rival grocery retailers.

Aldi's local sales rose by 10% to about $10.5bn in 2020; it currently has 570 stores nationwide and will open another 20 in 2021.

Aldi has also nearly completed a refurbishment of its entire store network.

 But is it art?

The Australian - Page 12 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Avi Salzman - PortMac.News Summary

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) first rose to prominence in 2017 when a company called Dapper Labs launched and sold collectable images of cats known as CryptoKitties.

More recently, it and the US National BasketBall Association formed a partnership that sees the NBA licence video clips of matches via a trading platform called TopShot.

Aside from the NBA, other entities that are beginning to take NFTs include Christies and Warner Music Group, while NFTs have taken in $US200 million ($258.7 million) in the last four weeks, with that figure not including the sale of digital artwork by an artist known as Beeple for $US69 million.

If you believe Andy Warhol's definition of Art as being 'Anything you can get away with..', then it is !

Tech dip offers share price value

The Australian Financial Review - Page 21 & 23 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Yolanda Redrup - PortMac.News Summary

Technology stocks have fallen on the ASX recently as a consequence of rising bond yields and the likelihood of higher inflation.

Afterpay has declined by 30% since mid-February, while WiseTech and Nitro have fallen 15.7% and 15.6% respectively.

Michelle Lopez from Aberdeen Standard Investments says the fall in tech stocks means that some are starting to look attractively priced, although Quinn Pearson from Credit Suisse contends tech stocks will continue to face "Substantial headwinds" as long as there continues to be comments about higher bond yields.

Stocks snap three-day losing run

The Australian - Page 20 : 23 March 2021 - Original article by Rebecca Le May - PortMac.News Summary

The Australian sharemarket rallied on 22 March, with the S&P/ASX 200 adding 0.66% to close at 6,752.5 points.

Crown Resorts rose 21.4% to $11.97 in response to an unsolicited takeover bid, while Telstra was up 1.25% at $3.25 and Myer advanced 5.97% to $0.355.

However, Fortescue Metals Group shed 4.25% to end the session at $19.16 and Insurance Australia Group was down 2.26% at $4.75.