An academic who expects zero interest rates within two years and a 40 per cent drop in house prices has promised to walk from Canberra to the top of Australia's highest mountain if he's wrong.
University of Western Sydney associate professor of economics and finance STEVE KEEN made the bet with Macquarie Group interest rate strategist RORY ROBERTSON.
Police chase stolen car 250km from Wagga to Canberra
20 Jan 2009 12:21 PM
CANBERRA, Jan 20 AAP - Police have arrested a 26-year-old man in Canberra following a 250km high-speed car chase that started in south-western NSW.
NSW police started pursuing the stolen car in Wagga Wagga on Tuesday morning and ACT Policing took up the chase when the driver crossed the border into the territory.
BRISBANE, Dec 31 AAP - Queensland police have caught a man with an alleged blood alcohol reading more than six times the legal limit.
A 28-year-old man from Peak Crossing was stopped overnight for a random breath test in the nearby town of Boonah, south-west of Brisbane, and allegedly blew .303 per cent.
SYDNEY, Dec 20 AAP - The drivers of a Porsche and two motorcycles have had their vehicles confiscated after reaching speeds of more than 220km/h in an alleged road race.
Police say the three men were racing along a 100km/h zone of the Pacific Highway on the far north NSW coast on Saturday about 10.40am (AEST).
MELBOURNE, Dec 15 AAP - Two young men accused of drag racing before a crash that killed a 15-year-old boy will stand trial.
Mitchell Cairnduff, of Wheelers Hill, died when a turbo-charged Mitsubishi Lancer driven by Jarrod Rooke hit a taxi at 120km/h, the Melbourne Magistrates Court heard.
MELBOURNE, Jan 6 AAP - A 78-year-old hoon caught speeding at 170km/h on a narrow country road on New Year's Day told police he was a skilled race driver.
Victorian Premier John Brumby, however, was not impressed with John Belfield's claims, labelling Australia's oldest hoon driver an "idiot", while police said he was toying with death.i
Heralding the arrival of a new publication from The Weird House, the first edition of House Harris, a news publication that should provide a window into current affairs in Australia with articles from the Australian Associated Press who should be credited and duly paid their royalties.
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Feature Story
Terror stalks Indonesia as hotel bombs kill at least 8
All House Harris News Articles are individually selected by The Editor
Main Feature Story
NAB first big bank to axe overdrawn fees for personal accounts
By Lema Samandar
Wed Jul 29 17:35:13 EST 2009
SYDNEY, July 29 AAP - National Australia Bank Ltd is the first of the big local banks to abolish overdrawn account fees, which contribute to about $1.2 billion in annual fee revenue for the banking sector.
Consumer groups applauded the move on Wednesday, as other major banks said they were considering following suit.
NAB will axe a $30 overdrawn charge from all of its personal savings accounts and personal transaction accounts from October 1 following a raft of complaints from customers.
The move is aimed at giving the bank a competitive edge and improving relationships with customers, NAB chief executive Cameron Clyne said.
"The customer clearly doesn't think the fee is fair and it's demotivating for our staff to spend time dealing with it," Mr Clyne told reporters.
Banks have come under fire over their penalty fees since the Reserve Bank of Australia revealed they reaped about $1.2 billion - or 10 per cent - of their total revenue from "exception fees", which include overdrawn fees, in 2007/08.
Households bear the brunt of exception fees and paid $961 million during the year, mainly for transgressions on deposit and credit card accounts.
Regularly Updated News As It Arrives From The Editor
House Harris News
Building approvals jump in June to ease RBA housing concerns
SYDNEY, July 30 AAP - A sharp jump in the number of approvals to build new homes should ease central bank concerns that money flowing into housing will boost prices rather encourage greater supply of affordable shelter. More...
SCI: Saturn's 'day' shorter by five minutes
PARIS, July 29 AFP - A day on Saturn is pretty short, and it just got shorter. More...
SCI: 150 years later, Darwin vindicated... by jellyfish
PARIS, July 29 AFP - Creatures large and small may play an important role in the stirring of ocean waters, according to a study released Wednesday that confirms a theory advanced by Charles Darwin. More...
US: Obama sees 'beginning of the end' of recession
RALEIGH, North Carolina, July 29 AFP - The United States may be seeing "the beginning of the end of the recession," President Barack Obama said Wednesday, as the world's biggest economy combats its worst slump in decades. More...
US: US, Britain discuss Afghanistan
WASHINGTON, July 29 AFP - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton began talks on Wednesday with her British counterpart David Miliband who vowed to keep troops in Afghanistan despite growing calls at home for their withdrawal. More...
NSW: Backpackers found in submerged car
SYDNEY, July 29 AAP - The bodies of a Korean man and woman have been found in a car submerged in an irrigation channel nearly a week after the pair went missing in the NSW Riverina area. More...
NSW: On-air lie detector stunt backfires on radio station
There's been angry criticism of the Kyle and Jackie O radio show in Sydney after a lie detector stunt backfired when a 14-year-old girl reluctantly revealed she had been raped. More...
NAB first big bank to axe overdrawn fees for personal accounts
SYDNEY, July 29 AAP - National Australia Bank Ltd is the first of the big local banks to abolish overdrawn account fees, which contribute to about $1.2 billion in annual fee revenue for the banking sector. More...
NSW: Four more with swine flu die in NSW =3D2
"Pregnant women, people who have existing health problems, such as diabetes, respiratory, heart and renal disease need to take extra care and consult their doctor if they experience flu-like symptoms," Dr Chant said in a statement. More...
NSW: Overheard phone call sparks building evacuation
SYDNEY, July 29 AAP - An suspicious overheard phone call has led police to evacuate a high-rise building housing Sydney's commonwealth parliamentary offices. More...
NSW: New patrol boats for NSW waterways
SYDNEY, July 29 AAP - Five new boats have been added to NSW Maritime's fleet to conduct patrols along the state's waterways and coastline. More...
Qld: Cold case murder reopened 34 years later
Police are hoping to solve the murder of a north Queensland woman by reopening the cold case on its 34th anniversary. More...
NZ dolalr peeks above US66C but settles below
WELLINGTON, July 22 NZPA - For the first time in nine months the New Zealand dollar peeked above US66c in overnight trading on Tuesday, but it spent the domestic day some way below that in a narrow range. More...
Swine flu vaccine available within weeks, makers say
ADELAIDE, July 22 AAP/AP - An Australian vaccine for swine flu could be available in weeks, with the world's first human trials now underway in Adelaide. More...
US: Obama in all-out push for US health reform
WASHINGTON, July 22 AFP - Barack Obama is to hold a primetime news conference on Wednesday as support for his six-month-old presidency dips and critics blast his handling of the economy and health care reform. More...
ASIIA: Eclipse evokes tears then cheers in Bangladesh
While today's eclipse of the sun has been viewed with great satisfaction by astronomers .. tens of thousands of people have prayed in northern Bangladesh .. fearful it heralded natural disasters. More...
ASIA: Solar eclipse shrouds Asia in darkness after dawn
TAREGNA, India, July 22 AP - The longest solar eclipse of the 21st century pitched a swath of Asia into near-darkness after dawn, as millions gathered to watch the once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon on Wednesday. More...
EUR: Global health officials mull how to slow swine flu
In part of a global effort to slow the spread of swine flu .. some Muslim countries are advising pregnant women not to attend the hajj pilgrimage. More...
Fed: NSW surpasses Vic with highest swine flu death toll
Health authorities say four men have died in New South Wales over the past two days who've tested positive to swine flu .. with other medical conditions .. taking the state's toll to 17 and the national toll to 41. More...
Fed: Swine flu vaccine available within weeks, makers say
ADELAIDE, July 22 AAP - A vaccine for the deadly swine flu could be available within weeks, with world-first human trials underway in Australia which has now recorded more than 40 deaths. More...
FED: Labor doesn't want to take over hospitals: AMA
CANBERRA, July 22 AAP - The Rudd government doesn't want to take over the country's hospitals despite threatening to do just that before the last election, Australia's peak doctors' group says. More...
ASIA: Thailand swine flu toll nearly doubles to 44: ministry
BANGKOK, July 22 AFP/AAP - The swine flu death toll in Thailand rose to 44 on Wednesday, making it the country with the most reported fatalities in the Asia-Pacific region, officials said. More...
Fed: Climate change not an issue for hydroponics, industry says
CANBERRA, July 22 AAP - The hydroponic horticultural industry says it's facing a bright future despite the dismal outlook for the environment because of climate change. More...
Survey finds corporations are still thinking short term
SYDNEY, July 22 AAP - Short-term thinking is a stumbling block to corporate endurance yet many Australian executives believe companies are still swayed by short-term profit goals, a survey says. More...
FED: Murder laws must change: ACT police
CANBERRA, July 22 AAP - When it comes to murder, Canberra is dead out of touch with the rest of the country. More...
ASIA: Afghanistan-Pakistan together in war on terror: ministers
KABUL, July 18 AFP - Afghanistan and Pakistan have vowed to work together in the fight against an insurgency gripping both nations, promising boosted border controls and closer co-operation on arresting terror suspects. More...
US: Astronauts on first space walk of Endeavour mission
WASHINGTON, July 18 AFP - Two astronauts from the US space shuttle Endeavour have ventured out for the first of five planned spacewalks aimed at completing a Japanese laboratory at the International Space Station. More...
ASIA: Australia to help Indonesia after terrorist attack
Australia's offered to treat any of the 55 people injured in Friday's terrorist attacks in Jakarta that left nine people dead. More...
NSW: Family of five killed in northern Sydney
SYDNEY, July 19 AAP - A family of five, including two children, have been killed in a northern Sydney home in what's believed to have been a violent robbery. More...
ASIA: Clinton urges global terror fight, honours Mumbai victims
MUMBAI, July 18 AFP - US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for a global fight against terrorism after paying tribute to victims of last year's deadly Mumbai attacks, as she began a visit to India. More...
ASIA: Malaysian extremist behind Indonesia attacks: official
JAKARTA, July 18 AFP/AAP - A Malaysian extremist wanted for a string of terror attacks has been named as the likely culprit behind suicide bombings at two luxury hotels in Indonesia that left eight dead, including three Australians, and 55 injured. More...
ASIA: Singapore confirms first swine flu-related death
SINGAPORE, July 18 AP - Singapore's health ministry has confirmed the country's first swine flu-related death, a 49-year-old pneumonia patient who suffered a heart attack. More...
Vic: Swine flu eases hold on Victoria
MELBOURNE, July 19 AAP - Swine flu appears to be easing its grip on Victoria. More...
NSW: Neale denies bush ordeal was hoax
SYDNEY, July 18 AAP - British backpacker Jamie Neale has denied his 12-day bush ordeal was a hoax, saying he wrote goodbye notes to his family thinking he would die in the NSW Blue Mountains. More...
Vic: Fire at Spotlight store in Sth Melb
MELBOURNE, July 17 AAP - A large fire at a fabric and home interior store in inner Melbourne may have been deliberately lit. More...
NSW: Police smash cocaine ring during series of raids
Police say they've smashed a Sydney cocaine ring. More...
US: Obama condemns Jakarta bombings
WASHINGTON, July 17 AP - President Barack Obama has condemned the "outrageous attacks" on two hotels in the Indonesian capital, and US officials say at least eight Americans were among those wounded in the suicide bombings. More...
ASIA: Suicide blasts at Jakarta Ritz, Marriott kill eight
JAKARTA, Indonesia, July 17 AP/AAP - Suicide bombers who checked in as guests smuggled explosives into two American luxury hotels in Indonesia's capital and set off bombs that killed at least eight people and wounded more than 50, investigators say. More...
Fed: Catholic church confesses it is climate change sinner
SYDNEY, July 18 AAP - The Catholic Church has confessed it is one of the biggest carbon emission sinners in Australia. More...
Analysis: Jakarta blasts show militants resilient
JAKARTA, July 17 AP - Twin hotel bombings on Friday appear to show the resilience of al-Qaeda-linked militants in Indonesia despite a crackdown that many assumed had left them seriously weakened. More...
Fed: "Grave concerns" for Australians caught in Jakarta blasts
SYDNEY, July 17 AAP - The federal government was working on Friday night to confirm the identities of three Australians believed to have been killed in the Indonesian terrorist hotel blasts. More...
ASIA: Terror stalks Indonesia as hotel bombs kill at least 8
JAKARTA, July 17 AFP/AP/AAP - High-explosive bombs tore through two luxury hotels in Jakarta on Friday, killing at least eight people including foreigners as terrorism returned to the world's most populous Muslim nation. More...
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