Latest Headlines

Diversified miner Rio Tinto has opened its $US2.2 billion Argyle underground diamond mine in the eastern Kimberley.

Woodside Petroleum has announced a new agreement with Royal Dutch Shell to lay out an action plan to develop the Browse gas field off the Western Australian coast with floating processing technolog

Marengo Mining has entered a convertible notes agreement with its major shareholder to raise $US15 million.  

Poseidon Nickel says its historic Windarra nickel mine will cost $197 million to re-start, with a feasibility study flagging a 10-year mine life and first production in 2014.

Finance Minister Penny Wong has indicated the government is considering imposing a levy to fund its national disability insurance scheme.

Australian stocks have opened firmer, with the big retail banks leading the broader market higher.

We need to get over our blinkered opposition to high-density living in Perth.

ANZ Bank has posted a first half profit slightly above expectations, and increased its dividend.

The Australian dollar has rallied to its highest level in 11 days following gains on global share markets.

The S&P 500 has closed at a fresh record high amid renewed confidence in the eurozone after the formation of the Italian government.

The prime minister’s aid package for farmers has carried the day when compared to the Barnett government’s more modest offering.

The Australian dollar has closed firmer, pushing above 103 US cents and moving in line with the rising price of gold.

Indian conglomerate Lanco Infratech will pay Perdaman Chemicals and Fertilisers $7.5 million plus legal costs as settlement for a long-running $3.5 billion legal battle that erupted after Lanco pur

Oil and gas producer Santos has committed to a $100 million drilling and appraisal program over the next 12 months in the Northern Territory.

Claims of 457 visa rorts are just a desperate attempt by the federal government to draw attention away from its border protection failures, the opposition says.

Australian shares closed on a positive note as the four major banks lifted the market.

Ironbark Zinc shares jumped on the ASX today, after it released a report indicating the viability of its Citronen base metals project in Greenland.

Oil and gas explorer Sprint Energy has attracted the interest of Hong Kong-based private equity group Hanhong Limited, which has signed an agreement to invest $11 million in the Perth-based company

Ventnor Resources has signed a native title agreement with traditional owners the Yugunga-Nya people covering its Thaduna/Green Dragon copper project in the Murchison region.

Leading Australian economist Ross Garnaut has told a Senate committee that the mining tax is highly flawed and may never raise any revenue in its current form.

Bankwest has put its former administrative headquarters in Northbridge on the market, with agent Colliers International expecting the James Street property to stoke keen buyer interest.

The share price of minerals explorer Aquila Resources took a hit after its Japanese joint venture partner pulled out of some of its Queensland coal exploration permits.

Former agricultural investment company AACL Holdings has decided its future lies with a technology business established by Perth entrepereneur Gavin Burnett.

Plans for a 500-pen marina near Rockingham have passed the scrutiny of the state’s environmental watchdog, but the project will have to meet some of the strictest coastal development conditions if

Aviva Corporation has sold its Mmamanstwe coal project in Botswana to fellow explorer African Energy Resources for $3.5 million.

Soaring rents in the retail sector have prompted calls for a register of leases and a rebalance of power between landlords and store owners.

China’s second largest gold producer will invest $20 million in Perth-based explorer NKWE Platinum under a strategic partnership agreement announced today.

Low income earners in Perth are battling harder to find homes to rent, new research by Anglicare shows.

BHP Billiton has sold a copper mine in the US for $US650 million ($A634 million) as the resources giant continues to off-load assets.

The Australian market has opened higher, led by gains for the four major banks.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard says the May budget will be more about the economic challenges facing the nation, rather than the upcoming federal election.