Daily FNArena News - Australia

RBA Governor Glenn Stevens spoke at a business leader’s forum in Brisbane today and highlighted the bank’s tightening bias on rates remains as demand strength implies ongoing inflationary pressures.

It was no great surprise, but Paladin has downgraded FY07 production from 400kt to 270kt.

Merrill Lynch has upgraded Virgin to Buy on the basis of a strong operating environment and unnecessary concerns over Tiger.

National Australia Bank’s Monthly Business Survey for May shows conditions in the dometic economy remain strong and should remain so in coming months.

You’d thing a mining equipment hire company could write its own cheques in this market, but it’s just not the case. Thank God for private equity interest.

Intersuisse has joined the list of brokers with a Buy rating on AED Oil, attracted to the company’s imminent start-up of production from the Puffin field.

The increase in Australian employment in May was more than anyone was expecting, despite leading indicators already setting the scene. All economists now see the RBA’s trigger finger getting itchy. The next rate rise may be as early as next month.

Prodigal son Lachlan Murdoch has back-doored an investment in digital media leader destra, while destra has in turn increased its stake in Quickflix.

Under pressure from both the G9 and the ALP ahead of the election, the government has attempted to intervene between Telstra and the ACCC on the issue on fibre broadband.

The RBA has elected to leave rates unchanged in June.