THE NEWS WRAP: Cowin confident of resolution between Rinehart and Fairfax

Hungry Jack’s founder Jack Cowin is confident there will be a resolution between mining magnate Gina Rinehart and Fairfax Media that will allow her to join Fairfax’s board.

Cowin, who was appointed a Fairfax director yesterday, says he will act as an independent director and represent the views of all shareholders.

He says someone with Rinehart’s “level of financial investment” should be on the board. Rinehart has been pushing for two board seats in addition to a seat for Cowin.

New government agency to lift skills levels

Australian workers will have to retrain as low-skilled jobs disappear from the national economy, according to Federal Skills Minister Chris Evans.

A new government agency, launched by Evans yesterday, will work with industry to lift the level of skills among Australia’s workforce.

The new Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency replaces Skills Australia, and will work to identify and close skills shortages.

Google makes $US2.79b in three months

Google overnight reported that its quarterly profit surged to $US2.79 billion ($A2.68 billion) on rising online advertising revenue.  

The California-based tech giant says its profit rose 11% in the quarter ended June 30 as consolidated revenue climbed 35% to $US12.21 billion compared with the same fiscal quarter a year earlier.

“Google standalone had a strong quarter with 21% year-on-year revenue growth, and we launched a bunch of exciting new products… in particular the Nexus 7 tablet, which has received rave reviews,” chief executive Larry Page says.

Overnight

The Australian dollar traded at six-week highs today, as disappointing US economic data pointed investors away from the greenback.

At 7.08am, the Australian dollar was trading at US104.27 cents, up from US103.93 cents at 5pm yesterday.