Compiled for Reuters by Media Monitors. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW (www.afr.com) Discount retailer The Reject Shop <TRS.AX> has signalled that it will step up its store expansion plans following speculation that shops owned by its rival, Australian Discount Retail, will be closed after it comes out of receivership. The Reject Shop has previously outlined a long-term aim of opening a further 230 stores in addition to the 170 it currently operates. Industry sources estimate that up to 40 stores operated by ADR may be closed by its new owner, businesswoman Jan Cameron. Page 18. -- Building materials manufacturer CSR <CSR.AX> has said that it will take a couple of months to finalise details of the planned sale of its sugar business, with the company yet to work out how to split its A$1.2 billion of debt. Investors were hoping that the company would clarify its plans for the demerger at today's meeting. However, managing director Jerry Maycock said yesterday that the degree of volatility from earnings and capital markets made the process that much harder. Page 19. -- Electricity distributor Envestra <ENV.AX> said yesterday that it had refinanced around A$300 million of debt due this year with its banking syndicate. Envestra negotiated a A$280 million loan with a five-bank syndicate, while Australia and New Zealand Banking Group <ANZ.AX> agreed to convert a one-year A$50 million working capital facility into a A$75 million three-year facility. "Over the next five years the majority of capex will be internally funded," said chief executive Ian Little. Page 19. -- Qantas Airways <QAN.AX> has warned that it may have to make further cuts to its capacity due to increasing competition and falling demand. The carrier, which has already been forced to cut its flying capacity by 5 percent and shed 1750 workers, is expected to come under further pressure following the addition of two more carriers on the profitable route between Sydney and Los Angeles. "If you get a chance to get great airfares with Qantas, grab them while they last," chairman Leigh Clifford said yesterday. Page 21. -- THE AUSTRALIAN (www.theaustralian.news.com.au) A former satellite of failed investment bank Babcock & Brown yesterday announced that it has recorded a 99 percent loss on an investment in Israel's yellow pages directory business. Eircom, formerly known as Babcock & Brown Capital, purchased Israel's Golden Pages in August 2007 for A$143.3 million, and will receive just A$1 million for the business following a debt restructure which will see control given to the directory company's bondholders. Page 17. -- Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan has dismissed speculation that the Government was considering a major systematic review of the financial system following a meeting last month with the nation's top bank chiefs. The heads of the Big Four banks had requested a meeting with the Treasurer to address concerns they had over the level of legislation being pushed through Parliament without consultation, including a softening of the personal bankruptcy law. Page 17. -- Transpacific Industries <TPI.AX> admitted yesterday that past earnings were inflated with undisclosed one-off items, including profits on the sale of land and a reversal in a remediation provision. The waste management company, controlled by Terry Peabody, only revealed the items after an independent due diligence process was completed. Transpacific is attempting to raise A$800 million with new investor, United States private equity group Warburg Pincus, as part of an equity raising to cut heavy debt levels. Page 17. -- Australia and New Zealand Banking Group is outsourcing its mortgage processing to the bank's Bangalore operations in India. A program announced last month with the Finance Sector Union will be activated to retrain Australian employees affected by the move. A further 150 employees are likely to be taken on for document processing by external service providers, one of which is thought to be Perpetual. Mortgage document processing will be centralised in Melbourne with state-based administrative offices closing. Page 18. -- THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD (www.smh.com.au) Shares in Macquarie Infrastructure Group (MIG) <MIG.AX> yesterday dropped by as much as 8 per cent after revealing it has yet to settle plans to sell assets in order to pay debts. MIG has said it will either push for a capital raising or look to sell its 25 per cent exposure in Sydney's Westlink M7 road toll and a series of assets in the United States. "No decision has been made by the MIG board in respect of any of these options," said a spokesperson from MIG. Page 23. -- Shopping centre owner Centro Properties Group <CNP.AX> has rejected a request by Chinese group Lumar Investment for board positions, after Lumar called for an extraordinary general meeting to elect three independent directors to the board. Centro yesterday issued a statement saying that the request is deficient and does not meet the legal requirements for a valid notice. Centro's chief executive, Glenn Rufrano, said the group already has three new board candidates who will be elected in September. Page 24. -- Speculation is continuing that clothing retailer Kathmandu is being readied for sale by its owners - Goldman Sachs JBWere's Hauraki Equity No.2 Fund and Quadrant Private Equity. A prospectus registered in April by Kathmandu's holding company Milford Group Holdings did not indicate that the company is to be floated, but said the scheme would be terminated if there was an unspecified liquidity event. ING senior analyst Craig Brown said that an initial public offering for Kathmandu would be keenly sought. Page 24. -- Jack Flanagan, director of the Accounting Professional and Ethical Standards Board, has restarted the debate on the inclusion of ethical behaviour as part of accounting degrees. Mr Flanagan presented a paper this week stating that the collapse of companies such as Allco Finance Group, Babcock & Brown and ABC Learning had led to questions on the current state of ethics education. However, Martin Lawrence from RiskMetrics corporate governance consultancy said "I'm not sure how well you can actually teach ethics." Page 25. -- THE AGE (www.theage.com.au) Six leading economists have called for a new inquiry to update the 1997 Wallis inquiry into the Australian financial system. Yesterday a key member of that inquiry, Ian Harper, supported the call, saying that the intellectual framework of [the] 1997 inquiry had been rendered redundant by the financial crisis. Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan downplayed the economists' suggestion for a "people's bank," which Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull also rejected. Page B1. -- Qantas Airways was yesterday fined A$169,000 in Canada's Federal Court after it admitted to participating in a freight cartel which illegally fixed surcharges for cargo on routes from Canada between May 2002 and February 2006. Qantas has issued a statement saying that the settlement in Canada absolves the airline and current employees of any further liability. A European Commission investigation into the cartel is also expected to take place soon, and Qantas has indicated it expects to pay a very substantial penalty. Page B1. -- Kim Dalton, chairman of digital television industry group Freeview and head of television at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, has admitted that the launch of free digital channels is unlikely to increase viewer numbers. The comments from Mr Dalton come after a recent quarterly report card from Free TV noting healthy growth for the free digital audiences, which has been criticised by the pay television industry and some media buyers for comparing consecutive quarters rather than year-on-year figures. Page B2. --
