2009 September: Business

2009 September: Business

Anchor: Base Index
Other months: August October
Other areas: Climate computing education health international Internet science social technology Others

Topics: Advertising agriculture banking carbon cartels climate coal competition conservation consultancy consumerism copyright corruption credit cards economics environment fraud free trade freight globalism management manufacturing marketing media mining money newspapers outsourcing pay policy politics privatism property publishing recycling social television trademarks wealth

Carbon and Coal

(see also Mining and in Climate: Mitigation & National, and in Technology)

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Mathew Murphy, Coal in the firing line on permits, The Age, 2009 Sep. 30 (the Federal Government should withhold half the permits allocated to coal-fired generators under its emissions trading scheme and link their receipt to investment in low-emission generators, says a leading carbon expert)
Mathew Murphy, Carbon scheme doubts hit power stations, The Age, 2009 Sep. 18 (Victoria's power supply is being threatened by difficulties coal-fired generators are having in refinancing debt, due to uncertainty caused by the prospect of an emissions trading scheme)
Adam Morton, The world's worst polluters, The Age, 2009 Sep. 11 (the CO₂ Energy Emissions Index, released by risk assessment company Maplecroft, found Australia's overwhelmingly coal-based electricity supply meant the average person emitted 20.58 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year)
Roger Harrabin, Planes 'threaten climate targets', BBC, 2009 Sep. 9 (the UK economy may have to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2050 to make space for aviation growth)
Japan vows big climate change cut, BBC, 2009 Sep. 7 (Japan's PM-elect Yukio Hatoyama has promised a big cut in greenhouse gas emissions, saying he will aim for a 25% reduction by 2020 compared to 1990 levels)
Adam Morton, Emissions fall as states heat up, The Age, 2009 Sep. 7 (one of Victoria's warmest ever winters has produced a positive side effect—a fall in the state's greenhouse gas emissions)
Sanjoy Majumder, India emissions 'triple by 2030', BBC, 2009 Sep. 2 (the amount of greenhouse gases India produces will more than triple by 2030—but per-capita rate will stay low, a report says)

Competition and Cartels

(see also Marketing)

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Kelly Burke, Retailers under fire over website, The Age, 2009 Sep. 17 (the country's most powerful retailer lobby group scuppered Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's election promise to force grocery prices down, a government inquiry has been told)
Eric Johnston, Big four banks have all the mortgages, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (competition in the home-loan market has collapsed, with the big four banks now writing almost every new mortgage as small lenders are squeezed out of contention)

Consumerism and Credit Cards

(see also Social and in Social)

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Judith Burns, Recession barely dents 'eco-debt', BBC, 2009 Sep. 25 (the global recession has barely dented the trend to over consumption according to an independent think-tank)
Clancy Yeates, Debit-side spending outstrips the credit side, The Age, 2009 Sep. 18 (households are paying off their credit cards at a record pace, a sign that consumers are still wary about debt-funded shopping sprees despite the improving economy)
AAP, Credit card debt falls at fastest rate in 14 years, The Age, 2009 Sep. 17 (Australians are switching from credit to debit cards as they avoid extra debt in a new era of fiscal conservatism; the value of purchases and cash advances on credit and charge cards fell 1.4 per cent to $19.139 billion in July compared with the month before, data from the Reserve Bank revealed today; purchases on credit and charge cards fell 1.1 per cent in July; consumers, however, increased their repayments on credit cards by 2.8 per cent to $19.839 billion)
Patrick Collinson, Surge in ATM crime by Euro gangs, The Age, 2009 Sep. 8 (an EU watchdog has warned of an alarming increase in cash machine fraud by organised criminal gangs using sophisticated skimming technology, together with an explosion in ram-raids on ATMs; ATM crime in Europe jumped to €485 million last year following a 149 per cent rise in attacks on cash machines; gangs are using Bluetooth wireless technology to transmit card and PIN details to nearby laptops and using increasingly sophisticated techniques to skim cards)
Gadget shoppers branded 'stupid', BBC, 2009 Sep. 7 (staff at high street stores PC World and Currys have been caught insulting customers on social networking site Facebook)

Copyright and Trademarks

(see also in Internet and Technology)

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EU backs Google in trademark row, BBC, 2009 Sep. 22 (a senior judge at the European Court of Justice has intervened in an ongoing row between Google and brand names, such as Louis Vuitton)
Julian Lee, Bent out of shape over trademark laws, The Age, 2009 Sep. 10 (Australian marketers are facing stiff resistance in getting shapes or symbols registered as trademarks; this follows a court ruling that has left experts to ponder if the business of branding is only going to get harder)

Economics and Policy

(see also Money)

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Tim Colebatch, Economists fail to agree over crisis, The Age, 2009 Sep. 30 (a year into the worst global recession for 75 years, the Australian Conference of Economists finds no agreement on what caused it—or what we should learn from it)
Ross Gittins, We need to ask how it came so unstuck, The Age, 2009 Sep. 19 (the global financial crisis has revealed significant weaknesses in conventional economics; economists will need to face up to these if their discipline is to recover its reputation and relevance)
Mark Davis, Outside the bubble, The Age, 2009 Sep. 19 (the leading big-picture economist believes the latest financial implosion should turn his discipline on its head)
Joseph Stiglitz, The numbers game: making sense of GDP, The Age, 2009 Sep. 9 (clearer statistics will give us a clearer understanding of ourselves)
Tim Colebatch, The GDP numbers don't add up, The Age, 2009 Sep. 3 (yesterday's GDP figures are certainly wrong; but for now, we don't know which of its figures are wrong—and so we don't know Australia's real rate of economic growth)

Environment and Conservation

(see also in Health and Science)

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Sanjaya Jena, Oil spill threatens rare turtles, BBC, 2009 Sep. 24 (an oil spillage from a ship which has sunk off the coast of the Indian state of Orissa could harm rare Olive Ridley sea turtles, environmentalists warn)
Judith Burns, UK rivers failing new EU standard, BBC, 2009 Sep. 21 (three quarters of rivers in England and Wales fall below a new European environmental standard, according to a report)
Tim Colebatch, Millions of reasons for celebration—or concern, The Age, 2009 Sep. 19 (Rudd and Treasurer Wayne Swan like immigration; not only does it raise your economic growth—more people spend more money—but Australia accepts only young migrants, who are likely to spend years in the workforce paying taxes; and that helps finance an ageing population)
AP, Pollution makes male fish more feminine than ever, The Age, 2009 Sep. 16 (US scientists believe 20 per cent of male black bass in river basins have egg cells growing inside their sexual organs, a sign of how widespread fish feminising has become; the findings come from the US Geological Survey in its first comprehensive examination of intersex fish, a problem linked to women's birth control pills and other hormone treatments seeping into rivers)
Jane Hammond, Oil spill a national emergency, say groups, The Age, 2009 Sep. 5 (environment groups are calling on the West Australian and federal governments to declare a national emergency in response to an oil spill off the Kimberley coast; the calls come as reports trickle in from fishermen who have seen the impact of the spill on the environment)

Fraud and Corruption

(see also in Internet and Social)

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Paola Totaro, Tax fraud case extradition bid, The Age, 2009 Sep. 19 (Philip de Figueiredo, an alleged architect of the offshore tax schemes of millionaire celebrity clients such as rock identity Glenn Wheatley, argues he was just a “backroom man”, an office manager who signed documents without knowing their content)
Kate McClymont and Vanda Carson, Tape could 'bring down' NSW Government, The Age, 2009 Sep. 5 (Sydney property developer and loan shark Michael McGurk may have been killed because he was in possession of a tape that had potential to bring down the NSW Government)
Pfizer whistle-blower's drug fear, BBC, 2009 Sep. 3 (one of the whistle-blowers in the Pfizer healthcare fraud case says he felt he was "swimming upstream" as the firm illegally promoted drugs)

Globalism and Free Trade

(see also in International)

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Steve Schifferes, Who runs the global economy?, BBC, 2009 Sep. 21 (when the G20 leaders gather in Pittsburgh, aside from all the talk of economic recovery and regulation of the banks, one of the key topics will be reforming the way the world economy is governed)
China and US in new trade dispute, BBC, 2009 Sep. 14 (China launches an "anti-dumping and anti-subsidy" probe into imports of some US car products and chicken meat)
Eric Ellis, World turns disapproving eyes on Singapore banquet, The Age, 2009 Sep. 9 (Singapore seems to subscribe to a “don't ask, don't tell” policy on where money comes from; in recent years, Singapore has actively sought to become Asia's Switzerland, the discreet depository of the super-rich, however they made their money; that led to a boom in private banking, with an attendant boom in property and high-end services for this monied elite, including education)
Ian Wishart, Malawi's children pay dearly for the world's cheap tobacco, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (tens of thousands are just “collateral damage” to multinational companies)

(see also in Computing)

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Brendan Nicholson, Submarine Corp 'out of its depth', The Age, 2009 Sep. 28 (the Federal Government-owned company intended to play a vital role in planning and building the navy's potent new submarine fleet is performing poorly and badly needs an overhaul)
Don Watson, Language like this should be put to the torch, The Age, 2009 Sep. 19 (telling people requires language whose meaning is plain and unmistakable; managerial language is never this, and being without roots or provenance there is no past from which to learn)
Kenneth Davidson, Transport's big problem? No one's in charge, The Age, 2009 Sep. 7 (Melbourne's franchise system is a failure, both financially and practically)
Carol Nader, Minister wants mandatory quotas for women on boards, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (Victorian Women's Affairs Minister Maxine Morand wants to make it mandatory for private companies to meet a quota of women on their boards)

Manufacturing and Mining

(see also Coal and in Science and Technology)

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GM to develop Indian electric car, BBC, 2009 Sep. 24 (US carmaker General Motors says it will develop a small cheap electric car for the Indian market)
Barry FitzGerald, Diamonds aren't forever, the pipes are running dry, The Age, 2009 Sep. 24 (new diamond discoveries are becoming increasingly rare, and most existing mine resources will be gone within 15 years)
Jorn Madslien, Mini points to revamped BMW image, BBC, 2009 Sep. 20 (the buzz around Mini's launch of new models at the Frankfurt motor show last week brought fresh hope for the future for factory workers in Oxford; the models may also point to the future of parent company BMW)
WTO rules on huge plane dispute, BBC, 2009 Sep. 4 (the World Trade Organization has given its decision on a huge trade dispute over planemaker Airbus)

Marketing and Advertising

(see also Competition and in Internet)

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Julia Talevski, How to build a website, The Age, 2009 Sep. 15 (it pays to educate yourself in the fundamentals of creating a website and learning how to market your operation online)
Cigarette branding 'misleading', BBC, 2009 Sep. 5 (subtle branding on cigarette packets misleads smokers into believing some products are less harmful, research suggests)
Jane Martin and Boyd Swinburn, Junk logic is shielding junk food adverts, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (television profits are still given priority over our children's health)
Daniella Miletic, Milk additives actually add little, says Choice, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (a study of more than 100 leading milk brands by consumer advocate Choice found that the only real difference was the fat content that divided full-cream, low-fat and skim milk; it found milk products promoting extras such as calcium, vitamin D, A2 proteins, omega-3 fatty acids and those promising “stronger bones” offered no real benefit to most consumers and were often sold at a higher price)
Nick Miller, Junk food and tobacco under fire, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (junk food advertising should be phased out, the cost of cigarettes should be more than $20 a packet, and soft drinks and cask wine should be hit with higher taxes, the Federal Government's preventive health taskforce says)

Media and Television

(see also Newspapers and in Technology)

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Jane Martin and Boyd Swinburn, Junk logic is shielding junk food adverts, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (television profits are still given priority over our children's health)

Money and Banking

(see also Economics and Wealth)

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Eric Ellis, From financial powerhouses to the houses of power, The Age, 2009 Sep. 23 (it seems that bankers don't retire, die or get sent to Guantanamo Bay, as many victims of the global financial crisis might prefer, but get their careers and millions repackaged into a political calling)
Asian cities challenge old order, BBC, 2009 Sep. 22 (London and New York's positions as the world's leading financial centres are being challenged by Asian cities, a survey says)
Banking fees 'incomprehensible', BBC, 2009 Sep. 22 (information given to some banks' customers was "incomprehensible" and fees were "opaque", a European Commission report says)
Philip Aldrick, Barclays' toxic assets deal slammed, The Age, 2009 Sep. 18 (Barclays has been accused of 'banking by sleight of hand' after creating a company to take over its most toxic assets and ring-fence future losses)
Bank crisis lessons 'not learned', BBC, 2009 Sep. 14 (a year after the collapse of Lehman Brothers, a think-tank warns that little has changed and bonus culture has returned)
Tim Colebatch, One step ahead of financial disaster, The Age, 2009 Sep. 12 (why has this crisis proved so much milder than we expected?; why has Australia escaped so much of the fallout?; and what lies ahead?)
Central banks back new regulation, BBC, 2009 Sep. 7 (central bankers at the Bank for International Settlements back new supervisory measures for their industry)
G20 pledges tougher bank action, BBC, 2009 Sep. 5 (finance ministers from the world's most powerful economies agree measures aimed at regulating the banking system)
Eric Johnston, Big four banks have all the mortgages, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (competition in the home-loan market has collapsed, with the big four banks now writing almost every new mortgage as small lenders are squeezed out of contention)

Outsourcing and Consulting

(see also Pay and in Computing and Social)

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David Rood, Indian tech giant quits $75m Geelong project, The Age, 2009 Sep. 12 (a $75 million information technology project at Geelong's Deakin University—expected to create 2000 jobs—has collapsed, costing Victorian taxpayers millions of dollars)

Pay and Wealth

(see also Outsourcing and in Computing and Social)

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Anne Davies, Nations to muzzle greedy fat cats, The Age, 2009 Sep. 27 (the G20 meeting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has agreed to new global principles that will require nations to prevent financial sector executives being promised bonuses without regard to the company's balance sheet)
Peter Martin, G20 board releases bold plan on executive pay, The Age, 2009 Sep. 26 (executive bonuses would be scaled back, reviewed annually and unlinked from short-term share price movements under a bold plan presented to world leaders meeting in Pittsburgh)
Julia Finch, British executives thrive in crisis, The Age, 2009 Sep. 15 (executive salaries at Britain's top companies leapt 10 per cent last year, despite the onset of the worst global recession in decades, in which their companies lost almost a third of their value)
Malcolm Maiden, Moves afoot to rein in the fat cats, The Age, 2009 Sep. 9 (proposals to regulate corporate greed are slowly taking shape)

Privatisation and Private Equity

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Melissa Fyfe, Prisoner's rights abused, The Age, 2009 Sep. 27 (a prisoner was assaulted and marched naked through the controversial Melbourne Custody Centre in an incident that breached his human rights, the Ombudsman has found; the August 2008 incident, revealed in the Ombudsman's recent annual report, led to the punishment of several officers from the prison's operator, the private company GEO Group Australia)
Kenneth Davidson, Transport's big problem? No one's in charge, The Age, 2009 Sep. 7 (Melbourne's franchise system is a failure, both financially and practically)
Clay Lucas, The buck stops here, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (faster, better, cheaper: privatisation was meant to improve Melbourne's transport network; ten years later, Lucas examines if we are any better off)
——, Train, tram operators to get billions, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (Victorian taxpayers will pay about $9 billion in the next eight years to two private operators to run Melbourne's trams and trains, with lighter penalties if they fail to run on time; Connex's name will be removed from trains and the system renamed “Metro”; the massive Government rebranding exercise will cost $25 million)

Publishing and Newspapers

(see also Media and in Others)

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News Corp closes Asian magazine, BBC, 2009 Sep. 22 (Rupert Murdoch's News Corp is to close its Hong Kong-based magazine, the Far Eastern Economic Review)
David Marr, Masthead's rebirth stirs musings of Times past, The Age, 2009 Sep. 12 (from Monday The National Times begins a new life as a collection point for commentary and debate on the Fairfax website; those who've carried a flame for the paper all these years will recognise a few names and faces; it isn't over)
Michelle Grattan, A trapped PM is read the book, The Age, 2009 Sep. 8 (Melbourne University Publishing's chief executive, Louise Adler, has taken the opportunity of a trapped Kevin Rudd to aggressively push the case for continued protection for the Australian book industry)
Google modifies Europe book plans, BBC, 2009 Sep. 7 (Google Books offers concessions to European publishers, concerned at the impact of its digital library project)

(see also in Climate and Health)

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Szencorp leaves little rubbish in its wake, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (staff at South Melbourne's Szencorp Building are among the best recyclers in the country, with each occupant producing almost 100 kilograms less waste than the average Australian office worker)

Social and Property

(see also Consumerism)

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Jane Martin and Boyd Swinburn, Junk logic is shielding junk food adverts, The Age, 2009 Sep. 2 (television profits are still given priority over our children's health)