Colin Jacoby

Perth-based EFTel Ltd has set its sights on providing broadband connections to rural, regional and remote areas of Australia, after the internet service provider received funding approval to supply subsidised broadband services to regional customers.

While Pilbara ports are experiencing good times thanks to the resources boom, the shipping industry is still plagued by the perception it is an impractical, costly and comparatively slow form of transport.

A spate of recent mergers and acquisitions in the consulting sector has led to a number of Perth-based engineering, mining, ICT and environmental consultancy players joining forces with local and east coast-based firms.

Bentley-based animal pharmaceutical company Chemeq Ltd has reported a loss $32.6 million for the year ended 30 June 2006.

Western Australia recorded 14 per cent annual growth in state final demand for the year to June 2006, the highest in Australia and even stronger than that of China.

It has been a hectic time of late for South Perth-based Aztec Resources Ltd, with the iron ore explorer signing sales contracts, revising its ore reserves and opposing a takeover bid.

In his first visit to Perth since taking up the position in August, the US Ambassador to Australia said last week that it was imperative that negotiations relating to agriculture, which were unsuccessful during the Doha round, be revived.

A sustained period of economic growth in South Africa presented an abundance of opportunities for Australian businesses, particularly in engineering, agriculture, and infrastructure development, according to Australian high commissioner to South Africa.

Despite a long road ahead until operation, West Perth-based Tethyan Copper Company remains optimistic, with the copper explorer in the midst of an exploration and pre-feasibility program for its flagship prospect in Pakistan.

Tourism Western Australia has appointed an east coast agency to handle the online component of the state’s advertising campaign.

The Export Finance and Insurance Corporation has released a new financial product to improve small to medium-sized companies’ access to working capital.

Impressive recent market debuts by uranium juniors have added further impetus to a resources-driven economic growth cycle that shows few signs of slowing down.

While base metal prices continue to rise as supply dries up, one base metal has witnessed a price slump which has had a detrimental effect on the profit results of its miners.

The property and resources markets aren’t the only sectors undergoing rapid growth at the moment; there’s also been a marked rise in sales by the state’s small-to-medium enterprises, according to national group Sensis.

Backed primarily by Chinese money, Perth-based unlisted public company Yilgarn Infrastructure has proposed a $2 billion rail and port development, including the construction of a new port at Oakajee, in the Mid-West.

With the current debate over where the country is heading in terms of the roll out of high-speed residential broadband, one Western Australian company has decided to leap ahead of the pack.

The announcement of a $6.5 million net loss has prompted West Perth based mineral explorer Consolidated Minerals Ltd's share price to nose dive almost 10 per cent in today's trading.

When it comes to making online reservations for business and personal travel, Western Australian small to medium enterprises appear to be leading the world.

The ongoing debate over broadband access has prompted calls for an overhaul to the current copper cable network.

A focus on clean energy developments has provided fresh impetus to Carnegie Corporation Ltd’s expansion strategy, following the West Perth-based company’s recent listing on London’s Alternative Investment Market and executive team restructure.

The dumping of Telstra’s plans to build a $4 billion high-speed broadband network through Australia has raised questions about the future of broadband technology.

The finite nature of the world’s oil reserves, and the speed with which they are being exhausted, has prompted a Welshpool company to develop portable, low operating cost technology to produce biodiesel from a range of natural oils and fats.

Australia’s information and communication technology industry has a long road ahead before it can develop sustainable export markets, according to a recent report.

While significant one-year returns are a positive sign for any business, maintaining these results year-in-year-out is a challenge of more significant proportions.

While the likes of Woolworths steal the limelight with a $1 billion net profit, Western Australian companies appear to have slipped under the radar posting their own record figures for 2005-06.

Expectations of an interest rate rise following the Reserve Bank’s November meeting have been dampened by news last week that consumer sentiment for the June quarter fell by a near-record amount.

Resource stocks are not the only ones to be profiting from the burgeoning environment in Western Australia, with companies in the mining services and property sectors also welcoming significant returns.

A diverse range of resource stocks, including coal, gold, iron ore and uranium, as well as non-resource stocks from the property and water treatment sectors, featured among Western Australia’s top stocks in one-year returns.

Despite falls in its global trade performance, a 2005 current account deficit of 21.2 billion euros, political instability and the unenviable position of having the lowest growth rates in Europe, Italy remains an important trade opportunity for Australian

Dermot Patterson has resigned as chief executive officer of embattled sustainable water and power company, Solco Ltd, only five months after his appointment to the role.

The Perth advertising industry has experienced a period of heightened activity of late with the creation of a new organisation and a move by bigger players to create specialist teams to secure a bigger share of the advertising pie.

Western Australia has the dubious distinction of being home to both the best and worst performing biotechnology stocks in Australia, according to the latest Intersuisse Biotechnology Index.