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Organic infant formula maker Bellamy’s Australia has more than tripled its full year profit to $38.3 million. The company’s revenue for the 12 months to June 30 climbed 95 per cent to $244.6 million as sales from China and Hong Kong surged 331 per cent to $62.1 million. Australian sales rose 67 per cent to $178.6 million. A price increase in Australian in December 2015 helped Bellamy’s boost its gross profit margin from 32.9 per cent in 2015 to 45.7 per cent. The company declared a final dividend of 7.8¢ was declared, up 173 per cent on the prior year. Bellamy’s did not provide specific guidance, but said it plans to invest $15-20 million in its product, people, marketing and promotional activities. It will also expand its manufacturing capacity in order to boost its penetration in the Australian and Chinese markets. Bellamy’s has become one of the market’s darling stocks in recent years and strong sales of its products to China has helped the stock surge almost 200 per cent. Chief executive Laura McBain said regulatory changes in China in…

Many investors buy condominiums in Bangkok to rent them out and get a steady income flow while hoping for future capital gain through an increase in the value of their property. In order to get the best rents and easily find tenants, it is critical that investors understand the needs of residential tenants: who they are, where they want to rent, what they want and how much they can afford. There are two types of tenants in the Bangkok residential rental market. At the higher end are working expatriates and, at the lower end, generally with budgets of less than 10,000 baht per month, are Thais who cannot afford to buy a unit or just need accommodation for a short period of time like university students. There is only a very small downtown rental market for Thais and residential rental demand mostly comes from expatriates working in Thailand who rent, rather than purchase, and are normally here for only 2-3 years. Over the last three decades, expatriates have generally preferred living in only a few Bangkok districts, principally in Sukhumvit…

Australia’s population has hit the 25 million mark according to projections from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), a milestone reached in record time as net migration continues to outpace births. The ABS population clock estimates Australia’s population is increasing by one person every 83 seconds, and the new population record was set at about 11:00pm. While we cannot know for certain who the 25 millionth person was, author and political commentator George Megalogenis said they were most likely a young, female Chinese student or skilled worker. “The two biggest migrant groups in Australia are Chinese and Indians since the turn of the 21st century,” he told The World program. “So we’re getting an extraordinary number of Chinese and Indians from two countries that are actually rising. “Since about 2005, we’re receiving more people from overseas than have been added to our population through natural increase, so more migrants than babies. “The biggest story in the 21st century for Australia is the migration story.” Net overseas migration — the number of arrivals minus departures — currently accounts for 62 per…

More than $100 billion worth of new roads, rail lines, hospitals, skyscrapers, prisons, wind farms and other infrastructure is being built or planned in Victoria as the state’s surge in the delivery of major projects gathers pace. A spike in investment by governments and businesses in new projects in Victoria has pushed the value of what is being built or planned to a new high-water mark of $106.2 billion, a report by Deloitte Access Economics has revealed. Victoria’s infrastructure boom outpaced all other states in the three months to June, Deloitte said, as the list of projects in development or under consideration grew by $18.5 billion. The jump in investment by government and the private sector went against the national trend. Nationwide, total investment in projects slumped by $39.5 billion to $712.4 billion in the June quarter. Victoria’s share of the figure stood at $106.2 billion at the end of June, up from $76 billion at the same time last year. While investment declined at a federal level, a breakthrough in negotiations between the Andrews and Turnbull governments over funding…

Australia’s top universities are taking in a greater proportion of full fee-paying international students, a broader trend which is driving demand for student accommodation places, according to an industry report. This year alone 8,290 new purpose-built student accommodation beds will become operational nationally, a rise of 20 per cent on the previous year according to analysis by Knight Frank. Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide will account for 80 per cent of the new supply, But demand still outweighs supply with growth in both local and international students underpinning demand, according to Knight Frank. Helping to filling the new beds are international students. Among them, Chinese students are the largest single category. Chinese higher education enrolments hit 124,700 by April this year, a 17 per cent rise on a year earlier. The trend is expected to grow at a rate close to 10 per cent annually, on Knight Frank forecasts, pushing enrolment of Chinese students close to 294,000 by 2027. “There has been speculation of late that because Chinese global university rankings are improving, that this may have negative consequences for…

Victoria has eased ahead of New South Wales to number one spot in CommSec’s “State of the States” economic rankings, while Western Australia continues to lag in last place. It is the first time in almost four years that NSW has not been number one, and the first time in the history of the report that Victoria has held top spot. However, CommSec’s chief economist Craig James said the gap between the two remained narrow. “Looking forward you could see them changing positions over the next 12 months,” he told ABC News. People power growthThe main change has been weaker housing market indicators for NSW, notably in Sydney, while Melbourne’s property market has so far held up better, largely due to Victoria’s stronger population growth and construction. Mr James said high population growth had been the fundamental economic driver for the best-performing states. “When you’ve got more people coming to the states from other states and territories, from overseas, that creates demand for homes, creates demand for infrastructure, and that leads to stronger retail spending, more people in employment,” he…

More than half a million migrants came to Australia in the last financial year, new figures from the Bureau of Statistics show. While 539,000 people arriving was the highest number of overseas migrants ever to come to Australia’s shores in one year, the figure was offset by 276,000 leaving. Over the year, almost 87,000 people moved from another state to Victoria and 68,500 left – producing Victoria’s highest ever net gain, Mr Burleigh said. “Queensland was just behind, with a net gain of 17,800 people.” Of the 539,000 people who migrated to Australia over the year, 315,000 arrived on a temporary visa – including just over 150,000 international students, more than 50,000 on a working holiday, and 32,000 workers on temporary skill visas. Migration to Victoria among those on temporary visas reached a 12-year high, driven by increasing numbers of international students. Almost 97,000 people on temporary visas arrived in Victoria – about half of them students. Over the same year about 34,000 people on temporary visas left Australia, resulting in a net increase of about 63,000. The year before,…

Plans to build 15,000 new homes north of Manchester city centre have been approved by councillors. Planners at Manchester City Council have backed the Northern Gateway project, which will see the new homes built by 2038. The project is a joint venture between the council and the Far East Consortium developers. People will be invited to take part in an eight week consultation period throughout August and September. The council said the plans would be among the largest regeneration projects in the UK, stretching 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from Angel Meadow on the edge of the city centre to Collyhurst. Photo: The project would feature several green spaces It would feature a large park “connecting seven new and emerging neighbourhoods through high quality open green spaces and public squares”. The council said it would also feature at least 3,000 affordable homes. People will be invited to view the plans in detail and share their thoughts and ideas during the consultation period. Councillor Suzanne Richards, executive member for housing and regeneration, described the plans as “a once in a lifetime opportunity…

Melbourne Airport is set for a major overhaul, including a new domestic terminal and a major refit of international facilities, as it prepares for the number of passengers to double in the next two decades. The plan includes expanding the drop-off and pick-up zones at the airport by moving them behind the Parkroyal Hotel to help ease traffic congestion. Melbourne Airport chief executive Lyell Strambi said visitors were being held up by several intersections with traffic lights. “The scheme is to really have flyovers all the way from the Tullamarine Freeway, sweeping by the various terminals and then having them run off to each of these terminals,” he told ABC Radio Melbourne. Passengers may also be able to check their luggage in at the pickup/drop off zone. Melbourne Airport said it expected 68 million visitors a year by 2038. Melbourne Airport chief executive Lyell Strambi said visitors were being held up by several intersections with traffic lights. “The scheme is to really have flyovers all the way from the Tullamarine Freeway, sweeping by the various terminals and then having them…

Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Market will be added to the National Heritage List. Federal Environment and Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg announced on Sunday that the site would be recognised for its place in the city’s history. The move follows the Heritage Victoria ruling in March that blocked council plans for a $250 million redevelopment. The council spent more than $15 million planning its revamp. The plans involved an overhaul of the market precinct, the restoration of the site’s 140-year-old sheds and three levels of underground parking. However, Heritage Victoria told the council it did not accept assurances the sheds could be returned in their original condition. Lord Mayor Sally Capp said the new heritage protection, which the city council applied for in 2015, would not affect the market’s redevelopment. “The heritage listing and renewal can exist side-by-side and both are incredibly important,” Capp said. The proposed redevelopment of Queen Victoria Markets involved a new visitor information centre, new lifts and accessibility services as well as three levels of underground parking.  “For almost 150 years, it has sustained Melbourne, first as a…

The Palaszczuk Government has released an update to its 2018 State Infrastructure Plan as it aims to roll-out a total of $45.8 billion worth of infrastructure over the next four years. The second part of its State Infrastructure Plan (SIP) focuses on a range of infrastructure spending with its updated release, outlining the $11.6 billion of infrastructure investment to be rolled out in 2018-19, which aims to support up to 38,000 jobs. Economic forecaster Deloitte Access Economics said that the outlook for engineering construction in Queensland is better than it has been for some time. “Rather than wallowing in cash from a strong property market and asset privatisations as NSW and Victoria are, the Government is relying more heavily on raising new tax revenue and increasing debt to fund this infrastructure,” Deloitte’s quarterly Business Outlook report said. Up to 65 per cent of the Queensland’s infrastructure budget is allocated outside of the greater Brisbane area, explained Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning Cameron Dick. “Programs like the Queensland Transport Roads and Investment Program 2018-19 to 2021-22 outlines $21.7 billion in transport…

A major road through Southbank will have the number of lanes for cars cut in half and the space for vehicles replaced with parkland, under a long-promised Melbourne City Council plan that begins construction on Monday. Southbank Boulevard will become the “green spine” of the Melbourne Arts Precinct, with the road to be converted into what acting Lord Mayor Arron Wood said was “the most significant linear park in Melbourne”. The road will be shut between St Kilda Road and Sturt Street from Monday, July 16, with the project due for completion in August next year. It is the latest under-utilised stretch of inner-city road to be replaced by park, with two separate streets in North Melbourne being turned into green space in recent years. The $35 million Southbank project will open up 2.5 hectares of new public space, much of it in front of the ABC studios on Southbank Boulevard and behind the Victorian College of the Arts. There will be 87 trees cut down for the project along the length of Southbank Boulevard, with a council fact sheet saying there…