According to The Australian Financial Review, US networking technology giant Cisco will pour $61 million into a new Australian plan to develop critical infrastructure, target work on government digitisation projects and invest in local start-ups.
The $61 million will be deployed over three years and forms part of a global Country Digital Acceleration program, which it claims helps countries to elevate their performance in the innovation stakes, while also helping reposition Cisco as a leading player and an employer of choice in the cloud and artificial intelligence era.
Australia and New Zealand vice-president Ken Boal told The Australian Financial Review the investment was the result of a 12-month push from the local team to convince Cisco chief executive Chuck Robbins about the region's potential.

https://www.afr.com/technology/cisco-brings-61m-to-target-australian-innovation-and-digitisation-projects-20190221-h1bkfe

​If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/cisco
​

According to The Australian Financial Review, the Australian gold sector is in great shape in comparison to its global peers because money talks, according to Evolution Mining boss Jake Klein.
Mr Klein said the Australian sector was making money and doing a better job of delivering value to shareholders than some overseas peers, and that was creating opportunities to acquire assets in North America.
Evolution and other ASX-listed gold producers are now waiting for the dust to settle on Barrick Gold's decision to shelve a hostile $US18 billion ($25.4 billion) bid for Newmont Mining.
Barrick boss Mark Bristow had made it clear he intended to sell off Newmont assets in Australia if the takeover went ahead, but instead the world's two biggest gold miners have agreed to form a joint venture in Nevada.

https://www.afr.com/business/australian-gold-miners-making-hay-while-sun-shines-on-sector-20190312-h1cann

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/4705382 
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According to The Australian Financial Review, the federal government's $5 billion Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility has accelerated its funding of projects throughout regional areas before the May election.
While the NAIF has been criticised for the slow pace of its investments – with only four loans made in the first two years of its operation – it has cranked up its spending this year, making another six investments.
More than $1.3 billion has been spent on 10 projects in North Queensland, the Northern Territory and the northern half of Western Australia, and more money is expected to be pushed out the door before the end of the financial year.

https://www.afr.com/news/politics/northern-australian-infrastructure-facility-accelerates-loans-before-may-election-20190307-h1c3gi

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/7683578 
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According to The Australian Financial Review, mining giant Rio Tinto has sounded an alarm over the long term threat to its core iron ore and high carbon aluminium businesses from climate change, in what is expected to be the first of many more candid statements from resources companies this year.
In its maiden climate change report Rio said it was well placed to deal with an economy in which policymakers strove to limit global temperature rises to 2 degrees above long term averages because it had exited entirely from thermal coal and its portfolio of resources was "naturally hedged" across multiple commodities.
The company said its vast aluminium and copper production "will be needed in the transition to a low-carbon future and could provide an offset in an environment where our iron ore assets are less attractive from a climate change perspective".

https://www.afr.com/news/rio-tinto-sounds-climate-alarm-for-iron-ores-future-20190228-h1bt66

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https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/1170088 
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According to The Australian Financial Review, companies must be more specific about the unique nature of research and development activity they are conducting and improve their records of time spent on R&D tasks to avoid being forced to repay what could amount to millions of dollars in tax incentives, according to new government guidelines to be released recently.
Minister for Industry, Science and Technology Karen Andrews said the new guidelines would provide Australian businesses with more confidence in claiming support for software activities. The move follows criticism from members of the growing tech start-up industry after the government reclaimed previously paid incentives, including from online jobs marketplace Airtasker.

https://www.afr.com/technology/government-releases-new-rd-guidelines-for-confused-tech-firms-20190220-h1bi04

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https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/9503621

According to The Australian Financial Review, oil major Shell is launching itself into the fast-growing household battery market and will for the first time start selling energy products directly to Australian consumers through the acquisition of Germany's Sonnen.
​The takeover, announced in London recently, represents another significant stride by Shell into the consumer energy market, following on from its acquisition of UK-based household energy and broadband provider First Utility 12 months ago.
It comes just days after Shell's head in Australia, Zoe Yujnovich, confirmed the energy giant's ambitions to extend its New Energies business into the domestic market, including developing a 120-megawatt solar project in Queensland, building on its alliance with Sonnen and potentially entering the retail electricity and gas market longer-term.

https://www.afr.com/technology/shell-enters-home-battery-market-with-sonnen-acquisition-20190215-h1bb9p

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/6429042 

According to The Nikke Asian Review, Australia's two main parties are campaigning on who can best deliver on jobs and infrastructure ahead of a general election that comes as the country's record-long economic expansion shows signs of losing momentum in real estate, a key driver.
The ruling bloc, the conservative Liberal-National Coalition, finds itself behind the liberal opposition Labor Party in the lead-up to the election due by May, a recent poll shows.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who will lead the Coalition to the polls for the first time, promised his government will create 1.25 million jobs over the next five years, in a Jan. 29 speech in the northern state of Queensland. He also unveiled a 240 million Australian dollar ($171 million) transportation infrastructure plan for the state.
"So what is the proof of a strong economy?" asked Morrison. "It's jobs. Always jobs."
Morrison followed up with a stop Wednesday in Melbourne, Australia's second-largest city behind Sydney, where he pledged to combat the area's traffic problems. "Our plan for a stronger economy means we can back the local projects that will help bust congestion around the city and suburbs," he said.
Meanwhile, the Labor Party has struck back with an employment and infrastructure message of its own, while stressing the party's bread-and-butter issues of worker protection and social welfare.
"It's about jobs, jobs, jobs," party leader Bill Shorten said in the city of Gladstone on Jan. 22. "And secure jobs, in Gladstone and across Australia." He promised to boost employment by spending AU$1 billion to build up the nation's hydrogen energy industry.
In addition, Labor is pledging AU$5 billion for rail projects in Sydney and Brisbane to help ease traffic congestion. The party also seeks to advance a proposed high-speed rail line between Brisbane and Melbourne.
Australia's economy grew for 109 consecutive quarters through September. But the commodities boom that drove the expansion in the 2000s has waned, undercutting local economies dependent on mining.
A housing boom later stepped in to prop up the economy, but property prices have recently started to slip, owing in part to slower inflows of Chinese investment. Rising urban populations have contributed to traffic jams, a source of resentment among voters.
In the general election, about half of the 76 Senate seats will be up for grabs, along with all 151 seats in the House of Representatives.
The latest survey conducted by The Australian newspaper and Newspoll shows the Labor Party with 53% support, followed by the Liberal-National Coalition at 47%.
The Coalition has held onto power since 2013, but its time in government has been marked by strife within its Liberal Party core. Liberals twice switched party leaders. Morrison took office last August following the ouster of his predecessor Malcolm Turnbull.
Labor is proposing an economic policy package that is not much different from what the ruling coalition is putting forward. But Morrison is quick to dismiss the opposition's agenda.
"I think I'm pretty blunt about it," Morrison said. "The economy will be weaker under Bill Shorten and Labor."

https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Jobs-and-traffic-jams-take-center-stage-in-Australia-election
  If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-56098658
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According to The Australian Financial Review, the Port of Newcastle will set up an eight-person project team this month to do initial designs for a proposed $1.8 billion container terminal with the aim of becoming a trans-shipment hub for the east coast and Asia-Pacific.
The design could reflect the desire of major operators for automated facilities capable of handling much larger ships, as the Port of Newcastle seeks to become a hub that distributes goods to other ports on Australia's east coast, locations via rail, and to other ports in the Pacific, including New Zealand.
The port has met with four of the world's six biggest global shipping lines since December and all are keen on using a container terminal in Newcastle, said chief executive Craig Carmody.

https://www.afr.com/business/newcastle-port-says-the-south-pacific-is-its-playground-20190131-h1apjj

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​https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/5780645 
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According to The Australian Financial Review, Andrew Forrest's Fortescue Metals Group says it was right and the nay-sayers were wrong on the issue of heavy discounting for its lower grade iron ore products.
Fortescue pointed to the recent narrowing in the price gap between high and low grade iron ore as evidence that heavy discounting last year was part of a cycle and not a structural change in the Chinese market.

Ref: https://www.afr.com/business/fortescue-boosts-shipments-as-new-higher-grade-product-hits-the-mark-20190131-h1aoev

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​https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/4114151 
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According to the Sumitomo Corporation website, Sumitomo Corporation via its wholly-owned subsidiary Summit Southern Cross Power Holdings Pty Ltd (SSCPH), an electric power holding company in Australia, has acquired 100% of the shares of Infinite Energy Holdings Pty Ltd, which develops/sells distributed solar power systems, sells/installs storage batteries, and engages in electricity retailing, effective January 24, 2019.
As Australia’s population increases and electric vehicles (EVs) grow in popularity, a robust increase in electric power demand is anticipated. Falling prices for solar panels as well as the availability of support at the federal and state level has jump-started small distributed solar power projects that make use of the rooftops of residential and commercial properties, resulting in lower retail power prices for households and business users. Introducing solar power systems in Western Australia, where power prices are high due to the costs incurred in transmitting power through areas of low population density, makes particularly good sense due to the significant sunshine the state receives.
IE holds the top share in sales of solar power systems in Western Australia, and ranks fourth in sales across Australia as a whole. In addition to selling and installing solar power systems, IE serves as an electricity retailer, selling electric power procured through solar power systems and the wholesale electric power market to users via existing power grids. Adding to its high customer recognition and brand strength, IE has established strategic partnerships with major companies locally and secured sales channels by collaborating with partners in a broad range of industry sectors.
SSCPH acquired business interests in the Kwinana Power Plant in 2009 and the Bluewaters Power Plant in 2013, making it an important player in Australia’s electricity generation business. These two power plants supply about 30% of the electric power used by Western Australia’s power grid (enough to power about 800,000 households). Bringing its considerable corporate resources to IE’s existing business operations, SSCPH will help construct a platform for electricity retailing that utilizes distributed solar power generation and battery storage in Australia. It will also leverage the Sumitomo Corporation Group’s wealth of business line know-how and networks to create new business domains that combine electric power with other businesses.
By engaging in these efforts to utilize clean power drawn from renewable energies, Sumitomo Corporation is extending and expanding its business along electric power value chains from upstream to downstream. It will continue to respond to the needs of communities and customers, and contribute to meeting electric power demand worldwide.

https://www.sumitomocorp.com/en/jp/news/release/2019/group/11270

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
​https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/3464827
​