The test of the latest budget will be whether it boosts the competitiveness of Australian firms during a "painfully slow" transition away from mining to other sectors of the economy, mainly in services.
The mining of limestone, apparently.
The position has already been widely criticized as an astroturfing effort to boost the damaged image of Canadian mining interests worldwide, despite its supposed mission of addressing the issues of our mining companies that are marauding throughout the Global South.
The U.S. mining firm boosted the cash element of its bid for Normandy by 10 Australian cents per share today, with the Normandy board recommending the A$4.30 billion (U.S. $2.2 billion) offer.
But imagine what giant London-listed mining firms such as Rio Tinto and Anglo American could do to boost the flagging output of India's mines, helping its balance of payments in the process.Although trade in services between the two nations has grown fast, it is just $7 billion a year, a fraction of overall trade.
Unctad said the rise was due to the strong world economy and high prices for commodities, which boosted the activity of the oil, gas and mining sectors, many of which operate in areas such as Africa.
The White House has said it recognizes that coal mining communities in states such as Kentucky are "in transition and struggling" and has promised $1bn to help rehabilitate old mines and boost the economic prospects of former coal miners.
The test of the latest budget will be to boost the competitiveness of Australian firms during a "painfully slow" transition away from its mining boom.
We both spent our high school days (his much earlier than mine) scouring junkyards in our hometowns for parts to boost the performance of our cars, to sell for profit, or to just build something cool.
