AAP July 18, 2012 PUBS and clubs in Sydney’s Kings Cross that have been flouting liquor laws could be fined or stripped of their licences following a state government audit. NSW Hospitality Minister George Souris announced the audit in response to the death of Thomas Kelly, 18, who was king hit while walking along the neon-lit grog mecca earlier this month. Auditors began visiting licensed premises in the Cross on Tuesday night to inspect incident registers and cross-check them with CCTV footage from inside the venues. “Whatever miscompliance there may be, there are a range of sanctions,” Mr Souris told reporters. “The Liquor Act itself is powerful enough to undertake whatever sanctions are required and whatever sanctions are necessary as a result of miscompliance.” That includes stripping liquor licences and fines. Mr Souris said it will take at least four days to visit all the venues and additional time for…

Colin Kruger July 18, 2012 The Age Australians are now spending $20 billion a year on the private label products of the major supermarket chains like Coles and Woolworths and this is set to increase another $10 billion over the next five years as cost of living concerns squeeze household budgets. “The recessive economic climate has been a strong driver of private-label growth,” said IBISWorld general manager Karen Dobie. “Households have been reining in spending, paying off debt and increasing savings. This, coupled with an increase in the range of private-label products available, has led many consumers to make the shift to home brands.” The market research firm said Australians are expected to spend $85.9 billion on groceries this year ending June 30, 2013 with $21.6 billion of this being spent on private label products, up from around $10 billion five years ago. This spend is expected to hit $31.8…

Fran Foo The Australian July 18, 2012 SMARTPHONES just got much smarter for the manager of one bustling city cafe. Since last week, Frank Astorino’s Paradiso Terrace Cafe in the Sydney CBD has been trialling a modified iPhone that turns the smartphone into a secure, portable point-of-sale terminal. Dubbed Leo, the Commonwealth Bank device consists of a slimline terminal wrapped around an iPhone to process chip and magnetic-stripe credit and debit cards, as well as cash and contactless card payments. “We started trialling Leo last week and it’s just fantastic . . . an absolute godsend,” Mr Astorino said. Things can get hectic so it’s easy to see why he’s chuffed: each time someone uses Leo to pay during peak periods he saves between four and six minutes, allowing his staff to tend to more customers. Another benefit is Leo’s mobility. Mr Astorino and his staff can take the device…

Fran Foo The Australian July 18, 2012 SMARTPHONES just got much smarter for the manager of one bustling city cafe. Since last week, Frank Astorino’s Paradiso Terrace Cafe in the Sydney CBD has been trialling a modified iPhone that turns the smartphone into a secure, portable point-of-sale terminal. Dubbed Leo, the Commonwealth Bank device consists of a slimline terminal wrapped around an iPhone to process chip and magnetic-stripe credit and debit cards, as well as cash and contactless card payments. “We started trialling Leo last week and it’s just fantastic . . . an absolute godsend,” Mr Astorino said. Things can get hectic so it’s easy to see why he’s chuffed: each time someone uses Leo to pay during peak periods he saves between four and six minutes, allowing his staff to tend to more customers. Another benefit is Leo’s mobility. Mr Astorino and his staff can take the device…

Chris Zappone July 17, 2012 The Age Drivers should brace for higher petrol prices in the weeks ahead amid renewed concerns oil prices may have been manipulated by reporting agencies in recent years. “Motorists in mainland capital cities should expect to see pump prices between $1.30-1.50 a litre rather than $1.15-$1.35 in (the) coming fortnight,” said CommSec chief economist Craig James late yesterday via Twitter. The forecast for higher prices comes after global growth worries had sent average petrol prices lower for nine weeks straight from $1.52 per litre on May 13 to $1.34 last week, according to data from the Australian Institute of Petroleum. Mr James said the current stability in the European debt crisis and hopes for stronger Chinese economic growth may underpin rising petrol prices in the weeks to come. Motorists are often left puzzled how fuel prices can shift uniformly 10 per cent in a day…

Sarah Michael news.com.au July 17, 2012 WHAT do soldiers, accountants and insurance brokers have in common? They’re the most engaged workers in Australia, according to a new study by global firm Right Management. The survey of 5330 Australian employees measured workers’ emotional and intellectual commitment to their job and to the success of their organisation. The industry with the highest engagement was the armed forces at 50.4 per cent, followed by insurance at 49.1 per cent and accountancy 48.5 per cent. Workers in biotechnology had the lowest engagement at 23.9 per cent, followed by the agriculture, hunting, forestry, fishing industry at 25.1 per cent and retail at 28.9 per cent. Right Management general manager Bridget Beattie said armed forces rated so high because they had strong leadership at a macro level. Accountants and insurance brokers rated well because of the type of work they do. “[Insurance brokers] have been busy,…