Australia Makes Trade in Services Offer

LATEST AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS NEWS

Australia's latest offer in the World Trade Organization services trade negotiations in Geneva aims to secure new business opportunities for the country’s exporters. Australia's offer of improved access to its markets puts Australia in a strong negotiating position to open up world markets and achieve significant benefits for Australian services exporters.

Services is a fast growing export sector for Australia and a large part its economy – 84 per cent of Australian jobs are in services industries.

Australia is among the first WTO member nations to table an improved offer. It is critical that its trading partners now join in tabling revised offers if Australia is to make real progress in talks. Australia's offer includes legal, telecommunications, environmental, private health, freight logistics, construction and related engineering services, air transport (marketing), and other business services.

Australia is also offering improved commitments covering temporary entry to Australia by business people. This responds directly to the concerns and interests of developing countries, and reflects Australia's own strong interests in achieving more open access to the markets of other countries, both developed and developing, for our services professionals.

The Australian Government will uphold the right of WTO members to regulate and fund public services, and would not support any changes which cast doubt on that outcome. The Government will ensure that the outcomes of negotiations do not impair Australia's ability to deliver fundamental policy objectives in relation to social and cultural goals.

The initial offer is non-binding and can be amended or withdrawn at any time during the negotiations.

For information on this article, or on any other aspect of the Australian economy or business opportunities available, please email me.

David

editor@agarcarlyon.com

Spam Continues to Increase

LATEST AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS NEWS

A significant increase in the volume of spam sent across the internet in the last few years is leading to additional productivity costs for businesses according to the Australian Institute of Criminology. The Institute has recently released its latest report 'Spam: nuisance or menace, prevention or cure?' which discusses the increasing sophistication of techniques used to send unsolicited commercial email messages commonly known as spam.

In June 2003, 49 per cent of filtered email messages were spam, this number had increased to 67 per cent by December 2004. An estimated 60 per cent of spam comes from the United States.

Spam is not universally regarded as a problem. In a study from the United States, two-thirds of the respondents did not consider email to be spam if it originated from a sender with whom they had previously conducted business. The same study found that 59 per cent of the respondents found spam 'annoying but not a big problem', 27 per cent found it to be a 'big problem' and 14 per cent believed it to be 'no problem at all'.

For information on this article, or on any other aspect of the Australian economy or business opportunities available, please email me.

David

editor@agarcarlyon.com

World Class MS Research Center Opened

LATEST AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS NEWS

A state-of-the-art research facility housing some of Australia’s most promising multiple sclerosis R&D has been officially opened in Brisbane today.

The new headquarters of growing biopharmaceutical company CBio (an innovative Australian company turning quality academic research into promising therapeutic products) will accommodate an expanding research team developing world-leading treatments for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

In April 2005 CBio was one of eight Australian companies to receive funding as part of the government’s $150 million Pharmaceutical Partnerships Program. The company is set to commercialises its world-class R&D in Australia, and will be recruiting new staff for the task. CBio will use its government funding to support pre-clinical and clinical trials of its Cpn10 treatment for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

Cpn10 is expected to have fewer side effects than current drugs on the market and so has the potential to dramatically improve the quality of life for sufferers of diseases like multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. The treatment, if proven successful, will build on Australia’s global reputation as world-class pharmaceutical innovator.

Despite the fact that Australia has less than 1 per cent of the world’s population, it is home to almost 3 per cent of the world’s health R&D.

For information on this article, or on any other aspect of the Australian economy or business opportunities available, please email me.

David

editor@agarcarlyon.com

Workplace Reforms Imminent

LATEST AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS NEWS

With effect from July 1st, the Howard federal government will gain control of both Houses of Parliament – when it obtains an effective one seat majority in the Senate. This is the first time in nearly 30 years that an Australian federal government has been in such a position. With around two years until the next election, some in the electorate are nervous about what legislation the conservative government will pass.

In particular the union movement has been generating significant press coverage over the past month with a major scare mongering campaign aimed at drawing attention to the forthcoming industrial relations (workplace) reforms. With the full details of what the government is proposing still not entirely clear, the unions have commenced a series of strikes in key industries and media campaigns to ensure employees fear the worse.

This is unlikely to eventuate, with the government simply anxious to wind back workplace relation laws that are an impost on business – especially small businesses. The outcome will be a more reliable workplace, with more flexibility for employers and with greater opportunity for jobs to suit employees’ needs.

For information on this article, or on any other aspect of the Australian economy or business opportunities available, please email me.

David
editor@agarcarlyon.com

Helping Keep Produce Fresh for Longer

LATEST AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS NEWS

Trials of a new export packaging technology developed by the Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) have shown it can maintain field freshness of selected fruit and vegetables during extended periods of storage and shipping. Moisture loss during storage and long distance shipping reduces produce quality and saleable weight and leads to discarded produce. CSIRO's Moisture Control Technology (MCT) can greatly reduce these problems by managing the water vapour content around the produce.

The MCT liner is a simple bag that fits inside a normal carton or box. By keeping humidity high, MCT liners can reduce moisture loss significantly during long sea voyages. The unique design of the MCT liners also prevents any condensed moisture, which may have formed inside the bag as a result of temperature fluctuations during transport, from finding its way onto the produce. Eliminating free moisture on the surface of fruits and vegetables reduces the potential for produce breakdown due to pathogens. In a recent export trial of oranges to the USA, not only did the MCT liner reduce moisture loss, it significantly reduced the incidence of defects such as chilling injury and rind breakdown, which in some years can be a serious concern for the industry.

The CSIRO says that the technology can be incorporated into current export systems and has excellent potential for improving returns for exporters of fruit, vegetables and possibly even cut flowers. MCT could also be combined with other new technologies to extend shelf life, with the possibility of opening up new overseas markets that are currently too far away to be practical for surface transport.

CSIRO is now discussing the potential for larger scale export trials of the technology with major exporters of fresh horticultural produce.

For information on this article, or on any other aspect of the Australian economy or business opportunities available, please email me.

David
editor@agarcarlyon.com

Potential Defence Logistics Opportunities

LATEST AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS NEWS

The Australian Department of Defence is planning a major upgrade to its logistics information system with Brisbane based technology company MINCOM, it was announced today. Initial expenditure will be allocated from within the overall Defence Capability Plan budget of $100-150 million. The project aims to upgrade Defence's logistics system to provide new capabilities and improve information management and business processes. Defence's logistics information system is used to manage and track assets as they move through the logistics system from ordering to use within Defence.

The current logistics management system is a complex system which has developed in an ad hoc way over about 20 years, made up of more than 200 individual systems which track materials such as clothing, spare parts and other stores. The core logistics system known as the Standard Defence Supply System (SDSS) is installed at more than 1000 business units within Defence, handles some 600,000 transactions a year and has about 8,000 regular users. The system now requires an upgrade and improvements to keep up with both advancements in technology and the needs of Defence.

The upgrade could offer possible joint venture projects for US based corporations with skill synergies that sit comfortably with MINCOM.

Other aspects of the project include the development of an enhanced deployable logistics capability, an improved financials package, which would connect more effectively to Defence's financial information system, and an integrated In-transit Visibility System, which will allow Defence to track the movement of stores and components across the country and at overseas locations.

For information on this article, or on any other aspect of the Australian economy or business opportunities available, please email me.

David

editor@agarcarlyon.com

USA - Australia Free Trade Agreement Showing Tangible Benefits

LATEST AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS NEWS

Austrade (Australia’s trade commission) has announced that tariff reductions on extruded plastics brought about by the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) is helping Australian companies access US markets and similarly enabling US companies access Australian suppliers.

Australian design, manufacturing and marketing company EGR Group supplies automotive parts and accessories to companies such as GM, Ford, and Toyota, in 40 countries worldwide. One of EGR’s largest export regions has been the US market.

With the implementation of the AUSFTA on 1 January 2005, companies like EGR now benefit from reduced tariffs, and on a broader level, a shift towards a more transparent.

For information on this article, or on any other aspect of the Australian economy or business opportunities available, please email me.

David

editor@agarcarlyon.com

Australian Exports Reach Record High

LATEST AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS NEWS

Australian exports reached their highest monthly level ever in April, growing at 9% to reach $14.6 billion. This is the strongest monthly exports growth since the Olympics in September 2000 and the highest monthly level ever recorded.

According to the Federal government Australian exports are on track to achieve a record level in value and volume terms in 2004-05. Total exports in the 10 months to April 2005 were $133.2 billion, up 13.8% compared to the 10 months to April 2004.

The largest contributor to exports growth was a 14% rise in non-rural and other goods exports. This reflected a rise in coal exports of 35% and a rise in iron ore exports of 18 %, as higher contract prices start to flow through to export receipts.

Despite the drought, rural exports rose 7%, reflecting higher exports of live animals and fishery products. Strong growth was recorded in transport equipment exports, which rose 28% and metal exports (up 18%). Services exports moderated slightly after strong growth in the March quarter.

April's International trade in Goods and Services saw a slight moderation in imports in April and the trade deficit halved from $2.6 billion to $1.3 billion, the lowest deficit since January 2003.

There were falls in imports of consumption goods and intermediate goods, while capital goods imports increased, indicating businesses increased investment in imported inputs into production in the month. There was a slight rise in services imports.

For information on this article, or on any other aspect of the Australian economy or business opportunities available, please email me.

David
editor@agarcarlyon.com