Government

Australian businesses should prepare now to take advantage of the recent free trade agreement signed with China, according to a recent report by ANZ.

Australians will have two years of their metadata stored by phone and internet providers after the Abbott government's controversial data retention laws passed parliament.

After more than a decade of strong interstate migration to Western Australia, the number of people moving to the west coast is being outstripped by the number of Sandgropers heading for the east coast, according to new figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Federal Labor leader Bill Shorten is reluctant to back a solution to a stand-off with Western Australia about how GST revenue is divided among the states.

Fortescue Metals Group has cited the finer points of the Australian Competition and Consumer Act to justify calls by its chairman Andrew Forrest for Australia's biggest iron ore miners to cap production in order to lift prices.

FOR as long as I can recall, numerous commentators have been forecasting a hard landing in China. And for as long as I can recall they have been wrong.

Software company Stochastic Simulation has joined a growing list of Western Australian businesses kicking goals globally in oil and gas technology development, as local providers increasingly target opportunities offshore.

Australia is likely to avoid a recession as the mining boom fades, the Reserve Bank of Australia boss says.

Trading hours will be extended for retail shops in the metropolitan area on Easter Monday and Anzac Day.

Former prime minister Malcolm Fraser has died at the age of 84.

Western Australian teachers have accepted the state government's pay rise offer, with the education minister labelling the deal a win for common sense and financial responsibility.

Business groups have broadly welcomed the federal government's approach to improving the 457 visa scheme, but believe more changes need to be made to uphold the integrity and lawful use of temporary skilled migration in Australia.

The Committee for Perth has added to the debate over Perth's public transport system by releasing research indicating light rail systems attract more passengers, have lower running costs, and travel faster than rapid bus systems.

Fiona Stanley Hospital chief executive David Russell-Weisz has been appointed director general of the Western Australian Department of Health.

The federal government wants to give business four additional ways to cut carbon emissions under its direct action policy.

The Reserve Bank of Australia says it may need to take a razor to interest rates again as Australia's economic outlook continues to deteriorate.

Rising political player Christian Porter wants to hear from business on ways to reduce compliance costs.

Is it any wonder the sound of leather on willow brings us such joy?

Western Australian farmers are projected to enjoy the highest rate of return in the nation, excluding capital appreciation, for 2014-15, according to the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences.

State upper house member Rick Mazza has taken a leading role in the debate about the state's potato bureaucracy, the Potato Marketing Corporation.

More Western Australians were employed in February than ever before, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, but that was not enough to stop a 0.2 per cent rise in the state's unemployment rate to 5.8 per cent.

The jobless rate has eased from its 12 year high but economists expect the recovery will be temporary as the economy continues to struggle.

The Association of Mining and Exploration Companies has applauded state government plans to review charges for the Utah Point bulk export facility at Port Hedland but wants the review extended to other ports.

Plans to merge Perth's local councils will finally be officially shelved this week.

The state government has fast-tracked legislation into parliament to curb excessive rate rises on some tenements in the mining and petroleum sectors.

Australia's biggest and lowest cost iron ore producer has hit back at claims it has flooded the market with supply, with Rio Tinto pointing the finger at its big Australian competitors.

Car makers and the component industry will get to keep $500 million in funding after a backdown by the Abbott government.

Junking Centrelink's antiquated computer system could save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said in Perth today.

Job advertisements have risen for the ninth month in a row, but ANZ Banking Group still expects the Reserve Bank of Australia to cut interest rates at its next meeting.

The state opposition plans to shake up planning laws to support the development of community hubs across Perth, creating jobs close to where people live.

Home ownership levels have fallen by almost 10 per cent in Perth while population growth outshone the rest of the country, according to a report released by the Committee for Perth.

A major report on Australia's ageing population says growth and prosperity will suffer unless more older people and women are encouraged into the workforce and government spending is brought under control, but Treasurer Joe Hockey insists the best years are ahead of us.