International Business Opportunities

Australia is to admit more skilled migrant workers to help ease its labour shortage while cracking down on firms which mistreat foreign staff.

An extra 5,000 places for skilled migrants were unveiled by ministers as part of the government’s annual budget.
New powers are also being sought to fine firms which underpay workers or place them in unskilled jobs.
[…]workers will have to prove they can speak reasonable English as well as take a new citizenship test coming into force later this year.

To help employers recruit staff quickly, companies which comply scrupulously with the migrant visa system will have their applications fast-tracked.

Japan and Australia have completed the first round of talks on the terms of a preferential trade deal.

Officials from Japan and Australia have agreed they’ll aim to have another three rounds of negotiations this year.
(source)

Australian and Japanese officials will meet in Canberra Monday for the first round of negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement.

A senior Australian trade official Friday said on the government condition of anonymity that the two days of talks would focus on setting a framework for future negotiations.

[…] A joint feasibility study commissioned in April 2005, found a comprehensive agreement could boost Australia’s gross domestic product by 39 billion Australian dollars (US$33 billion) and Japan’s by A$27 billion (US$23 billion) over a 20-year period.
[…] Australia has FTAs in place with the United States, Singapore, Thailand and New Zealand and is in negotiations on an agreement with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Chile, China and Malaysia.
Japan has signed FTAs with Mexico, Malaysia and Singapore and is in talks with several other nations on similar agreements.
(source)

A survey carried out in Australia found that Australian manufacturing companies will slash at least 30,000 jobs this year as they move to relocate more work offshore. The study was conducted by the Australian Industry Group, on a sample of 800 manufacturers and 200 chief executives.

The Australian Industry Group chief executive, Heather Ridout, said:

“Last year we lost 30,000 jobs in the industry. This year we estimate another 4 per cent, which means roughly the same amount will be lost again.”
He added: “It’s going to happen in the future at an accelerating rate and there’s not an awful lot the Government can do about it”

About the main causes:

- A boom in commodities prices is radically reshaping industry, making it harder for manufacturers;

- A high dollar has made manufacturing exports more expensive for foreign buyers, while making it difficult for manufacturers to compete with a flood of cheaper imports;

- China, with its extremely low labour costs, has transformed itself into the world’s manufacturing hub.

As a consequence of that, a third of manufacturers is very concerned about the future of the industry and would plan to make greater use of offshore outsourcing. ( source )

Australia could become the favorite destination for outsourcing financial services in Asia.

The report’s findings commissioned by the Federal Government have identified five key advantages to offshoring in Australia:

1. low cost and deep pool of labour

2. low business infrastructure costs

3. stable business environment

4. strategic time zone advantage

5. good quality of life

The report focuses on opportunities in the following financial services:
a. equity research,
b. structured finance,
c. retail banking,
d. actuarial services

The report found specialised financial services staff cost on average 30 per cent less in Sydney than they do in London.

Why should companies outsource in Australia and not in India?

“We have better infrastructure, we have a strong and transparent regulatory and legal framework and a deep pool of accounting, actuarial and analytical skills. Australia is very well placed to provide the high-value-added activities.” said Gary Johnston, executive manager at Axiss Australia, a government body established to position Australia as a global financial services centre in Asia.

Co-author of the report Sriraman Annaswamy, who heads up offshoring advisory firm Swamy & Associates, said a skills shortage in India had led to a rapid rise of professional salaries and reduced its competitiveness. “Indian destinations are not necessarily the cheapest knowledge-processing outsourcing destinations as is conventionally believed” Mr Annaswamy said.

He said people were often surprised to hear it is cheaper to rent office space in Sydney than Mumbai and that office space in Brisbane and Melbourne costs about the same as Bangalore.

( source )