A fraction of the additional funding given to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in the latest Federal Budget will go toward boosting supplies of anti-viral medication against swine flu, and other possible viruses, for overseas staff. Minister for Foreign Affairs Stephen Smith said $400,000 had been allocated over two years “to replace ageing […]
IP Australia, in conjuction with BEC Australia, are running a number of nationwide events entitled ‘10 Ways to make Money from Smart Ideas’. The seminars will cover the basics of intellectual property (IP) – what it is and how to protect it – as well as run through some IP management strategies that will enable […]
‘Nation building’ was the theme of Federal Budget night, with Treasurer Wayne Swan allocating $22 billion to transport and broadband infrastructure in his second Budget. “The centrepiece of this Budget is the $22 billion we are investing in the infrastructure our nation needs to grow and to prosper in the years ahead,” said Swan in […]
The education sector will receive $5.6 billion in funding over six years, according to the Federal Budget delivered by Treasurer Wayne Swan last night. Swan noted the role of education in Australia’s recovery from recession: “Australia’s recovery depends heavily on our human capital, on our ability to educate our people, and innovation in business.” With […]
Treasurer Wayne Swan has flagged a record deficit of $57.6 billion this year in his second Federal Budget, with no sign of surplus for government coffers until the 2015-16 financial year. The deficit comes amid a spending spree that includes an increase in the aged pension, up $32.49 per week, a paid parental leave scheme […]
Australian and New Zealand cities rank among the best in the world for quality of life, according to the latest results from the 2009 Worldwide Quality of Living Survey, conducted by a global HR company Mercer. Robert Knox, Head of Mercer’s information product solutions business, said that economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region outstrips most […]
The predicted unemployment rate could have been up to 10 percent without the Federal Government’s two stimulus measures announced Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, after receiving advice from Treasury figures. “This Treasury advice finds that if the Government had done nothing, national unemployment in Australia would have been forecast to reach 10 percent,” said Rudd. “This […]
A survey conducted by credit reporting firm Dun and Bradstreet reveals that 28 percent of businesses expect to cut staff by the end of the September quarter, despite a rise in sales and profit expectations since the last survey. More than half of the businesses surveyed indicated that movements in the Australian dollar in foreign […]
International trade is part of the solution to the global food crisis, not one of its causes, said World Trade Organisation director-general Pascal Lamy. Lamy said trade enabled food to be transported from areas where it could be produced efficiently to areas of demand. “International trade was not the source of last year’s food crisis. […]
Branding is a powerful form of marketing that relies on the public’s perception of your business and its products or activities. Good branding should evoke certain characteristics that you would like associated with your business. This may be anything from professionalism to innovation depending on your position in the market. When customers buy for brand, […]
