Government

New car sales were down 11.6 per cent in Western Australia, with nearly 1,000 fewer cars sold in the month of April.

Merchandise exports from Western Australia in the 12 months to March were down almost 10 per cent on the previous corresponding period, according to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Atlas Iron has appointed its project adviser and former Western Australian politician Cheryl Edwardes to its board as a director.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has denied reports he was told coalition MPs want Treasurer Joe Hockey dumped if next week's federal budget flops with voters.

Australia's unemployment rate has ticked up, despite lower interest rates and a weaker Aussie dollar helping to support the labour market.

Directors have indicated their support for reform to the GST, including an increase in its rate, and raised concerns that public policy debate in Australia was of poor quality, in a survey conducted by the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Retail spending growth seems to be slowing a bit, but no more than might have been expected, and there is no good reason to expect the deceleration to continue.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott flew into Perth today to announce $500 million of extra Commonwealth funding for WA roads, while his finance minister Mathias Cormann kept up pressure on the state government to reciprocate by privatising more state-owned assets.

The state government will introduce legislation into parliament tomorrow designed to finalise the long-running Bell Group legal case, in which the Insurance Commission of WA and other creditors are fighting over a $1.7 billion payout.

Australia recorded a bigger than expected trade deficit in March, largely due to sagging prices for iron ore and coal exports.

Perth Airport chairman and Curtin University chancellor Colin Beckett has taken the role as head of the Western Power board, with Iluka Resources chair Greg Martin appointed as his deputy.

AN iron ore price bounce of almost 30 per cent from 10-year lows earlier this month will no doubt bring some relief to many in the industry and in the Department of Treasury.

Landlords of Perth CBD’s older buildings are upgrading their facilities to keep pace with new builds.

Premier Colin Barnett has formally announced his new chief of staff will be Peter (Willie) Rowe, who has recently wound down his lobbying business Third House in anticipation of taking on the new role.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has promised this budget will be a "dull" affair but a respected economist believes it will be anything but.

WA’s private colleges are finding it tough to bounce back from the once-high $A and perception of the state as an expensive destination.

Road haulage business McAleese Group has flagged a number of impairments and a significant hit to its earnings as it prepares to recommence haulage services at Atlas Iron’s Abydos and Wodgina mines this month.

Asset income rather than revenue from students will underwrite the future of WA’s public universities, but only if government policy catches up with the realities of higher education funding click through to see more on our universities feature.

The annual rate of inflation is staying well below the Reserve Bank of Australia's 2 to 3 per cent target, leaving the door wide open for a rate cut this week.

The City of Perth is embarking on significant organisational overhaul, which will result in an expansion of its directorships, a flatter structure, and more emphasis on economic development.

Western Australia’s home-building sector may be set to break all-time records in the 2014-15 financial year but the booming conditions aren’t likely to last, with a significant slowdown predicted over the next two years.

Perth will need to build an extra 800,000 homes over the next 35 years to accommodate population growth, a new report has concluded, and nearly half of these homes will need to be in existing suburbs.

Growth of up to 8 per cent among countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations region could provide opportunities for Western Australia, according to a recent report by ANZ.

Perth home prices have ticked slightly higher in April to a median price of $520,000, which equates to an increase of just 0.3 per cent over the past year

An environment lobby group believes the federal government can save billions of dollars by scrapping diesel fuel tax credits for some of Australia's biggest polluters.

Analysts are looking to the services sector to drive the next phase of economic growth, amid a slowdown in resources investment and the collapse of key commodity prices.

The commercial construction sector is emerging as a bright spot amid all the doom and gloom in WA. Click through to see the special report, with details of Perth's biggest construction jobs.

The chief executive of the Shire of East Pilbara has called on the owner of Newman’s only shopping centre to reduce rents.

The state education minister has denied the opposition's claims classrooms will suffer as a result of job cuts at public schools.

Treasurer Joe Hockey has welcomed moves by BHP Billiton to curb iron-ore production, which has boosted prices and in turn the prospect of a better budget outcome.

A bill to authorise the Western Australian government borrowing $8 billion has left the state opposition "thoroughly depressed".

The price of consumer goods and services rose 0.1 per cent in Western Australia and 0.2 per cent nationally in the March quarter, fuelling expectations of an interest rate cut in May.