Mark Beyer

This week’s property trust rout has highlighted the way in which an unexpected ‘x’ factor can change economic and market trends.

Ten years ago this month, Perth entrepreneur Graeme Morgan collected a giant payout when he and his fellow shareholders agreed to sell one of Perth’s great business success stories for $272 million.

The state Liberal Party has put forward a radical plan to phase out commercial shipping activity at Fremantle harbour in favour of a new port at Kwinana adjacent to the private port planned by private company James Point Pty Ltd.

Engineering company Clough Ltd's contract dispute over the G1 project in India has deepened after its client ONGC submitted a counterclaim worth US$1.2 billion (A$1.3 billion), a figure Clough insists ignores the limits of liability.

With world leaders gathered in Bali for this week’s climate change summit, it is instructive to look closer to home to see what is happening on the ground.

The Australian Small Scale Offerings Board has started to become a significant source of new capital for small Western Australian companies, with Live Technologies Ltd the latest to raise capital through this market.

The number of Western Australian companies listing on both the Australian Securities Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange has risen to 20, after West Perth-based gold producer Troy Resources NL lodged a preliminary prospectus in Canada.

Indonesian mining company PT Bumi Resources Tbk has announced plans to make a $455 million cash takeover offer for West Perth-based Herald Resources Ltd, which is seeking to develop a zinc/lead project in Sumatra.

Fairstair Resources Ltd has increased the value of its hostile takeover offer for iron ore developer Golden West Resources Ltd to $290 million, lifting its scrip offer to seven shares for every one Golden West share.

Indian manufacturer Bajaj Auto has outlined plans for the national launch of an autorickshaw that incorporates Orbital Corporation Ltd's direct injection technology.

Creditors of failed biotechnology company Chemeq Ltd are facing losses approaching $40 million after its receivers failed to sell its land and buildings in Rockingham, which are its main asset.

Shares in takeover target Midwest Corporation Ltd rocketed 12 per cent higher today after the company disclosed that it was in discussions with "parties interested in pursuing corporate transactions".

State opposition leader Paul Omodei has proposed the development of “major sustainable cities” at Karratha and Derby as part of a long-term plan to foster development in the north of Western Australia.

When Coogee Chemicals boss Gordon Martin addressed a WA Business News breakfast last month, he said one of his golden rules was that there was no room for politics in running a business.

The state government has responded to the acute shortage of industrial land in and around the Perth metropolitan area by allocating $1million for the development of an industrial land planning strategy.

Wesfarmers has become Australia’s largest sector employer, but like all employers it has to grapple with labour shortages.

Western Australia's Economic Regulation Authority has called for the establishment of a new government agency to faciltate private sector investment in the development of new water sources.

Junior exploration company Chameleon Mining NL has commenced legal action against iron ore miner Murchison Metals Ltd, even though Murchison has previously dismissed Chameleon's claims as baseless.

One of the big surprises of the new Labor ministry was the selection of fomer ACTU president Martin Ferguson as the resources and energy minister, in place of WA senator Chris Evans who held that role in the shadow ministry.

PricewaterhouseCoopers has substantially expanded its business advisory practice in Perth by purchasing management consulting firm GEM Consulting for an undisclosed sum.

Coogee Resources chairman Gordon Martin has described last year’s failed public share offer as “probably the best thing that could have happened” to the company, which is proceeding with its $800m oil project in the Timor Sea under private ownership.

Engineering and construction contractor Clough Ltd has told shareholders the company has dealt with its problem contracts and can look forward to profitable trading in future.

Last weekend’s federal election was a resounding victory for Labor, which has been given a mandate to introduce significant shifts in key policy areas such as industrial relations, climate change, environmental management and education.

Gordon Martin has built two major Western Australian companies without having to list on the Australian Securities Exchange, and he has no intention of changing that.

Three major South African engineering and construction companies have entered the Australian market with a bang, and each has adopted a different strategy.

Lobbying firm Hawker Britton has a new team in Perth, led by former state government advisers Sean Walsh and John Whitelaw, who plan to educate their clients to have realistic expectations about dealing with government.

Labor governments in NSW and Victoria announced today plans to lift their moratoria on genetically modified canola production, but their stance has not softened the opposition of Western Australian agriculture minister Kim Chance to GM crops.

Outgoing deputy prime minister Mark Vaile has become the latest coalition leader to quit, stepping down as Nationals leader in the wake of last weekend's crushing election defeat.

Outgoing defence minister Brendan Nelson has become the third senior Liberal to put up his hand for the party leadership, as Nationals' leader Mark Vaile today joined the former ministers choosing to exit politics.

The dispute over Western Power chief executive Doug Aberle's annual bonus has been resolved, following negotiations between the utility's chairman Peter Mansell and energy minister Francis Logan.

Prominent tax accountant Peter Moltoni has left the recently merged BDO Kendalls practice to establish a new firm in Subiaco.

The going rate for a non-executive chairman of a mid-sized listed Western Australian company sits between $120,000 and $170,000, judging by the data compiled by WA Business News.