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Herald Sun
13-06-2025
- Automotive
- Herald Sun
Huge change coming to Aussie car market in 2025
Don't miss out on the headlines from On the Road. Followed categories will be added to My News. Australia's car market is undergoing one of its biggest shake-ups in decades, with some experts calling it the most dramatic shift in automotive history. From surging Chinese car brands and a cooling electric vehicle market to aggressive discounting and oversupply, the car industry is in for a bumpy ride. Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries data shows 1,237,287 new cars were delivered in 2024, a 1.7 per cent increase on the previous year. But that growth is not expected to continue. Cox Automotive Australia corporate affairs manager and analyst Mike Costello said flagging sales should improve in the second half of the year. 'Rate cuts from the RBA will help turn this around in H2, as will an uplift in government fleet post Federal Election,' Mr Costello said. While the first half of 2024 was strong, the closing months revealed a slowdown as manufacturers cleared Covid-era backlogs and Australian buyers felt the economic pressure, from inflation and rising interest rates. Now, in the lead-up to June 30, brands are rolling out aggressive discounts and generous drive-away deals. The discounting we're seeing isn't just due to softening demand but is being driven by improved vehicle supply, global overproduction and intensifying competition. The Hyundai Santa Fe is a smart pick for a family-oriented SUV thanks to its three rows of seating and ample room for people and cargo. Picture: Hyundai Motor America via AP During the Covid-19 pandemic, stock shortages meant car dealers could sell vehicles with little or no negotiation but those days are defiantly over. Mr Costello said the industry is at a real 'turning point'. 'We've moved from a seller's market in Covid to a buyer's market now – more in line with historical norm, there's been an improvement in vehicle supply, which has led to the return of incentives and discounting,' he said. Global factories are also playing a role with Chinese automakers facing oversupply in their home market and tightening trade restrictions in Europe and the Unites States. BYD has built it's own carrier vessels to transport EVs globally. Picture: AFP Australia has become a viable market for Chinese car manufacturers which has lead to aggressive local pricing, especially from brands such as BYD, Chery and GWM. data services Director Ross Booth said much of the automotive growth is coming from electric and electrified vehicles. 'We're seeing a clear shift towards more fuel-efficient vehicles, with strong growth in New Energy Vehicles – which include hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and battery electric vehicles,' Mr Booth said. Hybrid and electric vehicle sales made up just 8 per cent of new cars in 2021, jumping to 25 per cent by the end of 2025. 'Looking ahead, we're predicting NEVs to account for up to 35 per cent of the new vehicle market by the end of 2025, driven largely by increased demand for hybrids and PHEVs,' Mr Booth said. Conventional hybrids like the Toyota RAV4 seem to be a sweet spot for buyers. Picture: AFP Conventional hybrids seem to be the sweet spot for buyers not ready to take the full EV jump. In 2024, more than 172,000 hybrid vehicles were sold in Australia, a 76 per cent year-on-year increase, according to Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) data. EV uptake is slowing down despite new models reaching showrooms each month. The biggest shake-up for the industry comes from China. New brands such as BYD, Xpeng, Zeekr and Chery appeal to cost-conscious buyers. BYD sales are up 103 per cent this year, Chery is up 234 per cent and GWM is up 14 per cent. Despite the growth, Mr Costello said some buyers still have reservations. 'It's clear that while a subset of buyers still have reservations, perhaps in part because of their broader opinions on the Chinese State, an ever-growing cohort are opting for more affordable Chinese cars, swayed by their long warranties, cutting-edge tech, and modern designs,' Mr Costello said. 'People are also learning that these vehicles are often no less reliable or capable than other products.' Originally published as Huge change coming to Aussie car market in 2025
CBC
05-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
Albertans for Carney? They're as impressed with new PM as they are with Poilievre: poll
EDITOR'S NOTE: CBC News commissioned this public opinion research to be conducted immediately following the federal election and leading into the second anniversary of the United Conservative Party's provincial election win in May 2023. As with all polls, this one provides a snapshot in time. This analysis is one in a series of articles from this research. Alberta's politics are not without their complexity. Here's one striking new example. While this is a province where many people are newly interested in separating from Canada because the Liberals won — again — and nearly all ridings went Conservative — again — Albertans appear as likely to express admiration for Mark Carney as for Pierre Poilievre. Yes, Albertans. A new Janet Brown Opinion Research poll conducted after the federal election for CBC News asked respondents for their impression of the federal Liberal and Conservative leaders, on a 10-point scale, where 0 means deeply unimpressed and 10 means utterly dazzled. And the results for Carney and Poilievre are nearly identical. Conservatives won nearly all the seats in the province and 65 per cent of the votes, compared to the Liberals' 28 per cent — far back, even if it was their best performance in Alberta in a half-century. But the polling data suggests that the number of Albertans who are very impressed with Carney outstrips the number who voted for him. It also suggests that significant numbers of Conservative voters aren't enamoured with their own leader, though some may consider themselves hopeful about the new Liberal prime minister. Typically, voter choices are largely driven by a party's leader, said John Santos, data scientist for the polling firm. The similarities in Albertans' views of Carney and Poilievre are a striking departure for that norm. "The parties they lead couldn't have been more far apart in terms of results [in the province]." Bryndis Whitson ran unsuccessfully for the Liberals in Calgary Signal Hill, finishing 24 points behind Conservative David McKenzie. But she's been campaigning for Liberals in Calgary since 1997, and said this was the most positivity she ever encountered. "There were some people who really, really liked Carney, and there was also a factor of people being very, very unsure about Pierre," Whitson said. She had begun door-knocking as a Liberal while Justin Trudeau was still prime minister. She recalls getting praise for her own ideas and background in the supply chain sector, but people were turned off by her leader. That all changed with Carney at the helm. "I think most Conservatives were very willing to give him a chance," she said. Poilievre certainly had his regional strongholds in the survey, with respondents far more likely to report a better impression of him outside Edmonton or Calgary, and among men. In line with party preferences, Carney had higher rankings among women. Poilievre's and Carney's scores broken down by gender are nearly mirror images of each other. OK with boomers Poilievre narrowly edged out Carney's rating among millennial Albertans and Gen X. But the wider gap was among seniors, who were far more impressed by Carney, and more unimpressed by his Conservative rival. Karamveer Lalh, a lawyer and longtime Conservative campaigner, helped the party's candidate win in Edmonton Southeast, where Mayor Amarjeet Sohi ran as a Liberal. He said older voters tended to be aware of Carney's background in finance and as the central bank governor in England and Canada, and that outshone the resumes of both Trudeau and Poilievre. Who else is showing more warmth lately toward the new Liberal leader? Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who stated after this week's premiers' meeting with the prime minister in Saskatoon that she saw an "immediate change" with Carney, after repeatedly crossing swords with Trudeau and his focus on climate action instead of boosting Alberta's oil and gas sector. "I haven't heard a prime minister say we want to build a bitumen pipeline to the northwest coast in a long time," Smith told Power & Politics on Monday. "The fact that we have a change of tone and a change of direction from this prime minister is very encouraging." Still, Alberta's premier has warned of a "national unity crisis" if the Carney government doesn't clear hurdles to pipeline development and roll back other oil-and-gas-related regulations. And there's also renewed interest in Alberta separatism, although this poll also suggests just 28 per cent of Albertans would vote to break the province off from Canada in the aftermath of Carney becoming prime minister. (Notably less than the 37 per cent who say they are highly impressed by Carney.) This is, of course, an early stage for Carney's leadership, and most new prime ministers enjoy a honeymoon period, said John Santos, data scientist with Janet Brown Opinion Research. But it appears that for now, many Albertans perceive that a key figure during past economic crises is the appropriate person for this moment of U.S. tariffs and economic upheaval. "If Albertans are going to be warm to any federal Liberal leader, one who comes from big business from that right flank of the federal Liberal party is going to be one of the Liberal leaders that, if they don't like more, will at least dislike less," Santos said. Conservative voters in Alberta are still predominantly more impressed by their own leader — and since there are far more of them, Poilievre's impression scores pull roughly even with Carney. However, four in 10 Conservative voters give Carney either a high or moderate score, as opposed to fewer than one-quarter of Liberals doing the same for Poilievre. "He was viewed favourably in Conservative circles before he came out as a partisan," Lalh says of Carney. "He was sort of seen as technocratic, well respected, helped to navigate the financial crisis." Conversely, 82 per cent of Liberal voters said they were highly impressed with Carney, compared to 68 per cent of Conservative voters who expressed that same sentiment about Poilievre. It might be chalked up to how polarizing each leader is. When Lalh would knock on doors of Conservative supporters, they tended to dump on the Liberals but not much on their new leader. When he visited Liberal doors, he'd more often get an earful about Poilievre. "Carney was fresh enough at the doors anyway that the people who were not particularly fans of Poilievre had a positive reason to vote for the Liberals," Lalh said. As for himself, Lahl said he appreciates how Carney has signalled he wants to address Alberta's concerns about getting its natural resources to market, but added: "I am reserving judgment until I see if he can walk the walk." Given that this survey measures how impressed Albertans are with the respective leaders, part of the lower score for Poilievre among his own partisans may have to do with voters being unimpressed his Conservatives lost, and that he lost his own seat, Santos noted. (Winning, of course, impresses more than losing does.) But it appears from this poll that Carney has a reservoir of goodwill among even Albertans who didn't vote for him. Smith has cautioned that while Carney's words and direction have impressed her, she's keen to see action on her priorities from the Liberals. It's those next steps that could determine whether Albertans sour on Carney like they did with his predecessors, or if they have finally found a Liberal leader they can get behind. The CBC News random survey of 1,200 Albertans was conducted using a hybrid method between May 7 to 21, 2025, by Edmonton-based Trend Research under the direction of Janet Brown Opinion Research. The sample is representative of regional, age and gender factors. The margin of error is +/- 2.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. For subsets, the margin of error is larger. The survey used a hybrid methodology that involved contacting survey respondents by telephone and giving them the option of completing the survey at that time, at another more convenient time, or receiving an email link and completing the survey online. Trend Research contacted people using a random list of numbers, consisting of 40 per cent landlines and 60 per cent cellphone numbers. Telephone numbers were dialled up to five times at five different times of day before another telephone number was added to the sample. The response rate among valid numbers (i.e. residential and personal) was 12.8 per cent.
News.com.au
02-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Dr Boreham's Crucible: Cryopreserver Vitrafy aims to heat up, even as it chills
For Vitrafy Life Sciences (ASX:VFY) chief Kate Munnings, two isolated local controversies are testament to how the recently listed cryopreservation outfit's technology can be put to good use. 'With every problem there's an opportunity,' she says. The first incident was Monash IVF's mishandling of biological samples that led to a mother being implanted with the wrong embryo. The second is the ongoing disquiet about the environmental impact of intensive salmon farming in Tasmania, which emerged as a key issue in the recent Federal election. Munnings reckons Vitrafy can ameliorate both problems. In the case of fish, it's better husbandry practices to make the industry more sustainable. 'We are looking at how we craft what we offer to that market as an opportunity to help with challenges they have experienced,' she says. In the case of the human biological samples, it's better freezing via Vitrafy's device and better tracking via its Lifechain internet cloud-based software. 'As a result of the embryo mix up, we have started conversations in the IVF sector about how Lifechain, with its quality and tracking and monitoring of biologic material, could be utilised,' she says. Plating up a new company There's seemingly little correlation between a cooking show and cryopreservation, but Vitrafy owes its existence to the culinary reality television show Masterchef. Vitrafy was co-founded by amateur chef Brent Owens, who won the cook-off in 2014. The victory sparked Owens' interest in food cryopreservation and a wider interest in the art of deep freezing – all self-taught. 'The idea was that if you could cryopreserve an egg, you could cryopreserve anything,' he said. Owens founded Vitrafy with Brian Taylor and Sean Cameron in 2017, with an initial interest in consumer applications, notably food (their backgrounds are in consumables export and manufacturing). The trio soon shifted their interest to human health (such as artificial insemination, blood products and cell gene therapy) and animal applications. Munnings headed the formerly ASX listed, now privatised, in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) house Virtus Health from March 2020 to November 2023. Munnings is also a non-executive director of Bunnings parent company Wesfarmers and the New Zealand-listed aged-care operator Ryman Healthcare. A Vitrafy non-executive director, Prof John McBain needs no introduction, having founded Melbourne IVF. Vitrafy listed on the ASX on November 27 2024, after a $35 million capital raising at $1.84 a share. Vitrafy's 'secret sauce' Vitrafy's products consist of freezing, thawing and packaging devices, overlaid by the Lifechain algorithm-based monitoring software. Cryopreservation has been around at least since 1966, when the deceased Walt Disney was rumoured to be (although repeatedly denied by his family) immersed in a vat for future revival. Vitrafy's technology is based on the principles of heat transfer, thermo-dynamics and fluid dynamics to remove heat from a sample 'in a controlled and consistent way at various temperatures and speeds'. The result is that freezing and thawing take minutes, rather than hours, thus reducing the risk of the specimens degrading. In the US, the company says, 20% of blood platelet samples need to be thrown out because of inadequate cryopreservation, at a cost to the health sector of US$280 million. Have you noted that, DOGE? Different types of samples require different freezing temperatures and durations. Vitrafy's 'secret sauce' is to be able to adapt the conditions to suit the sample. Last year the US Food and Drug Administration approved Vitrafy for sperm, ova and blood product applications, under a fast-track predicate device path. We came, we thawed, we conquered Vitrafy's US efforts centre on a collaboration with the US Army Institute of Surgical Research, which carried out a phase I study on blood platelet preservation. The project aims to improve the shelf-life of emergency blood platelets, which is relevant for the battlefield. Completed in April, the study reported platelet recovery of 88%, well above the desired threshold and without the need for cryoprotectants (see below). Post-thaw, the study analysed 24 units from eight healthy donors. The parties are moving to the next stage of the study, which in part involves higher throughput and is expected to complete by the end of the year. In the US, Vitrafy has also held discussions with the Red Cross and Blood Centres of America, a collective of independent biobanks. Fishy business Munnings says the salmon industry has a growing interest in artificial insemination, to improve hatchery and harvest management and thus address the over-fishing allegations. Following pilot testing, Vitrafy has signed a three-year commercial contract with Tasmanian salmon producer Huon Aquaculture to freeze and thaw brood stock sperm. In Huon's summer fertilisation program, Vitrafy's process of fertilising fresh salmon milt from vitrified material was compared to a rival's method. The result was a 72% fertilisation rate with Vitrafy's method, compared with 75% for fresh milt and 45% for rival techniques. The company has preserved a minimum 750 packs of salmon milt, representing 55% growth over three years (albeit from a low base). Vitrafy is carrying out a paid pilot program with Tassal, another major salmon producer. Holy cow! That's an improvement Vitrafy has a contract with the Ohio-based Select Sires, which accounts for 25% of the US bovine reproduction market. Cattle make up 40% of the US$5 billion-a-year global animal artificial insemination sector. Comparing Vitrafy's process to Select Sires' protocols, a phase I trial saw an average 30% increase in bull semen motility (in effect, their ability to swim). A planned phase II trial has been delayed to the December quarter, thanks to US President Donald Trump-related customs disruptions. Under the non-exclusive arrangement, Vitrafy retains ownership of the protocols and data. Freezing cells offers hot prospects Cell and gene therapy (CGT) research is booming – notably in off-the-shelf 'allogeneic' cancer therapies derived from donor material. But the frozen material must be as good as fresh, or else it is wasted. Munnings says the company is holding 'active conversations in the US and Australia with significant industry participants'. The Trump administration's cost-cutting drive has sparked concerns about CGT funding, but Munnings says it's still a 'vibrant industry looking for innovation.' She says CGT's approach to cryopreservation differs from the more traditional approach of the blood banks. 'But the blood banks are starting to collect blood for cell and gene therapies, so the two are starting to work together.' Finances and performance Essentially pre-commercial, Vitrafy reported March quarter receipts of $12,000 from its fish work. The company burnt $356,000, taking cash on hand to $34 million. Vitrafy's expenses are running at $1.1 million a month. Chief finance officer Simon Martin cautions spend will ramp up in the June half 'as commercial development intensifies' before settling next year. Vitrafy was awarded an Australian government $4.8m Industry Growth Program grant, for small companies with the potential for commercialisation. The company has pocketed the first tranche and will bank the remainder as research and development progresses over the next six months. Owens says the use of funds outlined in the initial public offer prospectus is on-time and on-budget. As for the US tariff threat, the company sources some components from outside the US. But it is looking to derive as much as possible in the US, where its Melbourne-based contract manufacturer Planet Innovation has a facility (in California). Vitrafy's research and development base remains in the Victorian town of Ballarat which – aptly – is freezing in winter. Its sparsely-traded shares have ranged between $2.03 on November 27 last year – the day after listing – and $1.08 on April 7 this year. Vitrafy versus others Vitrafy competes with three US giants: the Nasdaq-listed Azenta Inc and Cryoport Inc and Cytiva (an arm of the New York-listed Danaher Corporation). Owens argues there's more scope for cooperation than competition, given the parties tend to operate in different parts of the cryogenics supply chain. 'For instance, Vitrafy focuses on crypreservation, thawing and quality management steps, while Cryoport focuses on logistics and storage.' A key selling point is the non-use of toxic cryoprotectants such as DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide). Before cells can be used for animals or humans, the cryoprotectants need to be 'washed out': removed via methods such as centrifugation. In the case of blood platelets for situations such as battlefield injuries, time is crucial. So, achieving 88% recovery without cryoprotectants in the army study was notable. Owens says most rivals use nitrogen as a freezing agent, which also can be harmful. Compare the pair Locally, Vitrafy compares with the ASX-listed Cryosite, which has a 25-year pedigree. In February, Cryosite disclosed December half revenue of $6.6 million, with underlying earnings rising 15% to $1.52 million. Cryosite also reports the month of January was one of the strongest in its history and the company has doubled the capacity of its South Granville facility in Sydney. Cryosite is targeting clinical research organisations, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies with clinical trials, IVF clinics; and hospitals and private clinics with advanced cell therapies, In other words, Cryosite is in a similar space to Vitrafy, albeit not in the animal sector and with a more local focus. Pre listing, Owens said Cryosite was not so much a rival as a potential partner. Cryosite's market capitalisation of $37 million is dwarfed by Vitrafy's circa $100 million. In April 2016, Cryosite said it would maintain the storage of more than 2,000 cord blood materials, following the closure of the Brisbane-based Stemlife business. Dr Boreham's diagnosis 'It doesn't matter for us whether it is blood platelets, cell and gene therapy products, salmon or human sperm, our objective is to maintain the quality of the sample as best as it can possibly be,' Owens says. However, Vitrafy's strategy is to derive initial revenue from the animal market, which is a testing ground for the larger but more complex and highly regulated human market. Vitrafy cites a current global cryopreservation market of US$94 billion, with bio-repositories, such as blood banks, accounting for US$77 billion. Cell cryogenics and the animal/aquaculture sectors account for US$9.4 billion and US$7.8 billion respectively. The market is forecast to grow to US$186 billion by 2030. Post IPO, Vitrafy has been running hot with its development on several fronts. Still, the company's path to revenue is unclear and it needs to work hard to convince potential clients why they should freeze out their long-standing suppliers. At a glance ASX code: VFY Share price: $1.54 Market cap: $98.3 million Shares on issue: 63,849,674 (22.6 million shares are in ASX escrow) Chief executive officer: Kate Munnings Financials (March quarter 2025): receipts $12,000, grant income $2.64 million, cash burn $356,000, cash balance $34 million Identifiable major shareholders: Stacey Investments Australia (Dr Neil Stacey 5%), Krisami Investments 4.1%, VEF Pty Ltd 3.5%, Taylor Hotel Management 3,2%, Rarla Pty Ltd 3% Dr Boreham is not a qualified medical practitioner and does not possess a doctorate of any sort. There's no need to cryopreserve him as he lives in Melbourne, which is almost as cold as Ballarat in winter.
Herald Sun
29-05-2025
- Business
- Herald Sun
China's chilling warning for one Aussie city
Don't miss out on the headlines from National. Followed categories will be added to My News. China has again warned Australia against plans to take back its strategic Port of Darwin, threatening the move would result in 'enduring pitfalls for the country.' 'If the Darwin Port issue is further politicised, or forcibly taken back under the pretext of so-called 'national security,' it would become another negative typical case that affects the healthy and stable development of China-Australia relations,' an anonymous editorial in the Chinese Communist Party-controlled Global Times states. The strategic economic and defence facility was leased in 2015 for $506 million to the Australian subsidiary of a privately owned Chinese company, the Landbridge Group. The 99-year deal was cemented by the then Country Liberal Northern Territory Government. The geopolitical fallout was immediate. The White House complained it had not been consulted. After all, its freshly committed US Marine presence in the Northern Territory relied on the port for support. Australia's regional neighbours raised their eyebrows: Hadn't Canberra been pressuring them to reject significant Chinese infrastructure money? Ten years later, both Labor and the Coalition went to the May 2025 Federal Election promising to take back Military facilities across the Top End are being upgraded 'to enhance the ability of the Australian Defence Force to project force,' Brigadier Matthew Quinn said at a sod-turning ceremony earlier this month. The Port of Darwin is owened by a Chinese company. Picture: ASCO 'These critical upgrades follow recent works to enhance the main runway and taxiways, improving the capacity, security and resilience of RAAF Base Darwin.' It was just one $160 million piece of a massive international defence buildup across northern Australia. The cause: China's assertive territorial ambitions. 'Taking back the Port of Darwin from Landbridge Group would also symbolise a dangerous shift from commercial cooperation to military development,' the Global Times warns. 'The move of 'de-Sinicisation' aims to remove obstacles for the US to advance its militarisation in northern Australia.' The lease of Darwin Port to China's Landbridge Group has become a contentious issue. Picture:Strategic and economic security 'It is well known that Darwin Port only became linked to so-called 'national security' and subjected to a wave of political and security scrutiny after so-called 'concerns' were voiced from Washington,' the Global Times editorial insists. All China-based and owned companies must have Communist Party Commissars on their boards. They must also readily hand over any and all information on their customers and deals to any government agency upon demand. US President Barack Obama broke the news of potential problems directly with then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull during an APEC meeting in November 2015. He asked that Washington be given a 'heads-up' over similar deals in future. Obama's cause for concern was obvious. Chairman Xi was, at the time, deeply engaged in building illegal island fortresses on sand banks claimed by Vietnam, the Philippines and Taiwan. His government was vocally asserting ownership over Japan and South Korea's islands in the East China Sea. Threats of invading Taiwan had already become commonplace. Darwin was even then a significant stepping stone for rapidly expanding US and allied military activities in northern Australia. 'As the Indo-Pacific becomes increasingly contested, supply chains become more vulnerable and coercive statecraft becomes more common,' argues Australian Strategic Policy Institute national security analyst John Coyne. 'Darwin's proximity to key maritime routes and regional partners makes it an indispensable asset.' Chinese President Xi Jinping. Picture: Florence Lo-Pool/Getty Images Follow the money The purchase of the Darwin Port was touted as part of Chairman Xi Jinping's grand 'Belt and Road' vision of a Chinese-controlled trade network spanning the Pacific, Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe. The natural deep-water harbour is strategically positioned as a hub between the Indian Ocean, the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean. And about 4.5 million tonnes of cargo and significant quantities of oil and gas pass over its piers each year. In 2015, the Foreign Investment Review Board headed by then federal treasurer Scott Morrison, decided against examining the proposed deal. The Defence Department, undergoing one of many ministerial transitions, had no objections. And the then minister for trade and investment, Andrew Robb, was ecstatic. '(It is) a powerful sign of the enhanced commercial relationship between Australia and China flowing from the China-Australia free trade agreement,' Robb declared in October 2015. Robb resigned from Parliament four months later and immediately took up a position as 'advisor' to the Landbridge Group. Now, both sides of politics are firmly in agreement: Make Darwin Australian again. During the 2025 election campaign, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised the port would be sold to an Australian operator. This is despite reports US equity firm Cerberus Capital, which has close ties to President Donald Trump's White House administration, is preparing to make a bid. Former opposition leader Peter Dutton went further, promising his Liberal-National Coalition would nationalise the asset under government ownership. But Beijing is biting back. The Global Times warned Tuesday that 'should the Australian government take the drastic step of forcibly taking back Darwin Port', this would 'undoubtedly' produce 'enduring pitfalls for the country'. Russia's President Vladimir Putin greets Chinese President Xi Jinping. Picture: Mikhail METZEL / POOL / AFP Investor returns 'Whether the Port of Darwin becomes a hub of prosperous trade or the eye of a geopolitical storm is not a difficult choice, but it does test Canberra's strategic wisdom,' the Global Times editorial reads. The Communist Party editorial says its 2015 purchase had been 'timely assistance' to the Northern Territory at a time when Canberra 'wasn't interested'. 'From turning the port's operations from loss to profit and helping ease the Northern Territory government's debt crisis, to investing more than $A83 million and upgrading port facilities … and greatly contributing to local economic and social development, Landbridge Group's involvement has brought systematic and positive changes to Darwin Port,' it states. But concern over possible financial difficulties contributed to the port's prominence in the recent Federal Election. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised the port would be sold to an Australian company. Picture: NewsWire / Richard Gosling Landbridge Australia non-executive director Terry O'Connor said this week that the company had 'not yet received any offers or engagement from the (Australian) government at any level.' But he 'welcomed' comments by Beijing's envoy to Australia, Xiao Qian. Xiao issued a statement on Sunday after touring the port's operations. He insisted the lease had been purchased through 'an open and transparent bidding process, fully compliant with Australian laws and market principles'. 'It's very morally inappropriate to rent out the port when it is in the red and take it back once it is profitable,' he argues. Tuesday's Global Times editorial went one step further, warning that placing 'politics over the rule of law' sent a 'dangerous signal to global investors … especially in sectors like infrastructure and energy that require long-term investment'. NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner speaking with Landbridge Group chairman Ye Cheng. Picture: Lauren Roberts 'The operation of Darwin Port is, at its core, a market-driven economic project and should operate within the framework of the rule of law and market principles,' it adds. But the world economic and security order has been upended since 2015, with Chairman Xi securing an unconstitutional third term and US President Trump vigorously pursuing an 'America First' agenda in the opening months of his second term. 'Darwin's development has long been framed as a national opportunity. It is now a strategic obligation,' Coyne argues. 'Australia cannot afford to leave its north underdone or underutilised. 'A sovereign, commercially viable, and strategically aligned marine industry in Darwin is no longer aspirational.' Jamie Seidel is a freelance writer | @ Originally published as 'Enduring pitfalls': China's chilling warning over controversial Darwin Port deal
CTV News
28-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
Conservatives had a ‘leader problem,' not a ‘strategy problem': Liberal campaign director
Former Liberal national campaign co-director Andrew Bevan talks about when it became clear that the Liberals had a chance to win the 2025 federal election.
