Australia’s flag carrier has endured a torrid time of late and blamed rising fuel costs and newly introduced taxes at home and abroad for the move.

From February 9 domestic fares will rise by an average 2.5 per cent increase and its fuel surcharge on a one-way trip to London and Frankfurt will rise by A$60 from February 15; flights to Europe will also incur a $3.50 carbon fee from the same date.

“The Qantas Group’s jet fuel cost for the six months to December 31 was $2.2 billion, an increase of around $450 million compared with the previous year,” stated the airline. “Average year to date fuel prices are at their highest level since 2007/08.

“While fuel surcharges, price increases and hedging are being used to mitigate the impact of fuel prices, they will not fully recover the cost impact.”

The second assembly shift at the company’s Elizabeth plant will be axed leading to 150 contract workers losing their jobs in a move that the carmaker claimed would enable it to assemble cars in less time.

The Australian car manufacturing industry has endured a difficult time in recent months with Toyota announcing in January that it was to axe 350 jobs at its Altona factory in Victoria.

“Holden has set a very clear business strategy to grow sustainably, lower its cost base and make a small car in Elizabeth to ensure we are profitable on domestic production,” said Holden general manager Mike Devereux.

“Our results show what a success this has been for the industry. In 2011 Holden made around 90,000 vehicles, up more than 35 per cent or 24,000 units compared to the previous year, with the growth driven largely by the Cruze hatch and sedan,” he added.

The AEC’s figures revealed that political parties and independents brought in more than A$230 million from donations, funding and investments, with big tobacco and mining companies leading the pack.

Miners paid at least $8 million in waging its war against Labor’s milling tax, making the total campaign that unseated former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd worth a total of $34 million.

Big tobacco also splashed out by donating more than $14 million on its unsuccessful battle against plain packaging laws.

It was industry groups that proved to be among the big spenders in the mining sector with the Minerals Council of Australia spending a huge $4 million on political donations, while the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies donated a total of $2.3 million to political causes.

On the left of the political spectrum, the founder of travel website Wotif, Graeme Wood, made the single largest donation in Australian political history by giving $1.6 million to the Greens.

According to the business publication, the mining magnate could also be on her way to surpassing Wal-Mart heiress Christy Walton as the world’s richest woman.

Rinehart, who owns Hancock Prospecting, is now worth A$16.88 billion according to the compilers of the list, who added that her wealth was likely to grow further due to plans to expand her Hancock Prospecting iron ore operations and develop further coal projects.

The news comes in the same week as Rinehart applied for a suppression order on her family trust battle on the grounds that she fears for her safety.

Emails between Rinehart and her daughters arguing over the consequences of her wealth being public knowledge have been revealed in court.

One of the emails revealed that her eldest daughter had expressed concerns about the world knowing that she is “wealthier than Bill Gates”.

Speaking ahead of the Queensland Mining and Jobs Expo, which is taking place in Logan this week, Hinchliffe said: “We’re looking at 38,000 jobs in mining and construction over the next few years and we want to give as many Queenslanders as possible the chance to carve out a career in the resources sector.”

Derek Hunter chief executive officer for the Mining Industry Skills Centre said that mining expos that took place in Queensland last year attracted more than 50,000 expressions of interest.

Tony Caruso, head of training and recruitment specialists Mastermyne, remarked: “The pool of demand is definitely out there, especially in underground resources projects.

“And we’ve got a lot of [unskilled workers] coming in to fill these positions.”

The release of the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Counts of Australian Businesses, which includes the Entries and Exits June 2007 to June 2011 publication, has been welcomed by the Minister for Small Business Mark Arbib.

The ABS recorded a 3.6 per cent increase in the number of actively trading businesses in Australia in 2009-10 and a 0.4 per cent increase in 2010-11, representing a total increase of more than 83,000 operational small businesses.

“The growth in small businesses over the past two years should inspire confidence within the sector and is a reflection of the strong position of Australia’s economy,” said Senator Arbib.

Skelton Sherborne director Brad Skelton said that despite global economic outlooks remaining turgid and changeable, Queensland had a lot to look forward to.

“We saw a strong performance, especially in the middle part of 2011, and that will hold Queensland in good stead,” explained Skelton.

“It’s a year to tread cautiously. The mining sector can ride the bumps and end 2012 in a solid position, but it depends very much on commodity prices.

“Other major events at home this year, including the introduction of the mining tax and state election, could also be disruptive.”

Skelton made his remarks last week after launching a trend-setting index capable of measuring heavy machinery and tyre imports.

The index could prove vital in terms of proffering analysis on the mining and construction industries, Skelton explained, considering the sheer amount of equipment the company has brought into the country.

The shipping index is designed to keep track of heavy machinery imports, providing detailed information ahead of forming trends, and is poised to “empower companies to make the most of an uncertain year ahead”, Skelton noted.

Similarly, the newly launched tyre index measures the amount of work underway within the mining sector, and the resultant need for purchases.

“The index was able to predict how the sector was affected by the GFC. It showed mining equipment imports slumped in the last half of 2008, as the GFC arrived, and the first half of 2009. There was a 90 per cent drop in the number of machines being shipped into Australia. This represented a fall in revenue of more than $350,000,000 across the industry,” Skelton added.

“Since that time though there has been a slow but steady increase and by the middle of 2011 the index indicates the number of imports has surpassed pre-GFC levels.”

Skelton emphasised that Australia’s mining sector was “still one of the world’s strongest and it should remain so, despite other competing influences this year”, referring to both the mining and carbon taxes.

With regards to the state election in Queensland, he said that more disruption may take place as many locally active construction and mining groups await decision-making.

“All these factors signal an uncertain year ahead,” he remarked. “I believe a conservative approach will be taken by the industry and that could affect state revenue as well as company profits. I would like to see governments take this into consideration.

“Action can be taken though to minimise any possible damage. The shipping index and our new tyre index will help people make informed decisions and get the most out of 2012.”

Plans for the construction of the A$650 million Bushells Ridge subdivision proposal in the Central Coast region are currently being reviewed by the NSW Government and if approved would create a host of employment opportunities in the advanced manufacturing sectors.

The site would include 150 business allotments, a range of services, utilities and associated infrastructure, as well as warehousing and distribution facilities for the aerospace, defence and automotive manufacturer industries.

The Darkinjung Local Aboriginal Land Council, which owns the Bushells Ridge land, said in its planning report that the proposal would create job opportunities for locals Aboriginal communities.

“The proposed development will provide significant benefits to the Aboriginal community through sustained revenue that can be invested for the benefit of the community,’’ the report stated.

The SA Government has applied to the High Court to appeal the judgment after Argonaut Resources criticised SA mining and native title regulation last month following an order by the Supreme Court for it to stop its operations.

“The State contends that the Full Court erred in overturning the approval previously granted by the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs to the Torrens Joint Venture,” the SA Government said in statement.

“In the event the appeal is allowed by the High Court, the Torrens Joint Venture has been advised that it may be possible for an expedited hearing to be heard in approximately eight months.”

Tony Cruddas, the business leader for global consultancy, engineering and project management company AMEC, said fierce competition for skilled workers to build more than A$220 billion of planned and financed gas projects was driving up labour costs.

Labour shortages were making it tough to deliver major resources projects on time and on budget, Cruddas remarked.

“The base costs mainly labour, are very high in Australia, certainly for us the highest in the world at present,” he said.

AMEC has spent close to $200 million since November 2009 buying Australian companies that service the resources sector.