The federal government cutting its projected budget surplus for the 2012/13 financial year - Talking Business 2012 - Ep40

Summary: Leon and Garry discuss issues including: European Union leaders emerging after 10 hours of summit talks wielding an agreement on a eurozone banking supervisor - but are still left facing a minefield on the way to solving their debt crisis. Meanwhile, Greece's national statistics agency has revised upwards the country's 2011 deficit and public debt figures to 9.4 per cent of GDP The federal government cutting its projected budget surplus for the 2012/13 financial year, despite wide expectations it would stick to its original forecasts. The government's mid-year budget measures that will force large companies to pay their tax monthly and slash research funding. The budget update has recommitted to a surplus for this and later years, but the 2012-13 surplus is projected be $1.1 billion, rather than the $1.5 billion forecast in May. Among the "hits" the government has made to achieve $16.4 billion gross savings over four years, the baby bonus will be cut on July 1 next year from $5000 to $3000 for people having a second or subsequent child, saving $461 million, and the help for private health insurance will be trimmed, yielding more than $1 billion. International Monetary Fund statistics revealing that Australia has the third most expensive currency in the world, and the most expensive of the world's 20 largest economies A survey finding that a clear majority of Australia’s top chief executives expect the economic slowdown in China to have a large negative impact on the Australian economy, particularly in the next 12 to 24 months, and the expectation of an increase in their own companies’ profit has dropped significantly A CPA Australia report revealing that Australia's ability to compete internationally is under pressure as business leaders struggle to engage with Asia. A Deloitte Access Economics report claiming that Australia's growth could slow in 2014 and deliver headaches for business as commodity price falls put a brake on mining construction projects. Big mining projects that were approved a few years ago will drive output gains in the next two years, but the next round of project approvals will be a "pale shadow of the last lot". Exports of agricultural goods, processed food, wool and other fibres surging by more than $900 million last financial year, to almost $9 billion, thanks largely to widespread increases in exports to Asia. The federal government introducing a foreign ownership register for agricultural land The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) raising concerns about Carsales.com’s proposed acquisition of Trading Post from Telstra, with the regulator saying that the deal will diminish competition in the online automotive classifieds market. United States-based food processor Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) proposed a $2.68 billion takeover of the Australian grains marketer Graincorp Australian Tax Office data showing that at June 30, 2012, there were about 478,000 self-managed super funds holding more than $439 billion in assets, up 8 per cent on last year.