90 seconds at 9am: Big fat Greek bailout plan; Aussie tax reforms revealed

Bernard Hickey details the key news over the weekend in in 90 seconds at 9am in association with the BNZ, including news the Greek government and European finance ministers have finally agreed to a big bailout package for Greece. In exchange for new austerity measures to quickly reduce its budget deficit, Greece will receive 110 billion euros (NZ$200 billion) in loans. The eurozone is stumping up with 80 billion euros and the IMF is lending the the rest. However, there are still a few hurdles to jump. Germany must pass its share of the package, about 28%, through the Bundestag by May the 7th. There are elections in Germany two days later that may deprive the government of the majority it needs to get them through. Most Germans oppose the bailout plan. The Greek populace are also deeply unhappy, staging fresh street protests on the weekend that sparked teargassings and fires. If the European authorities can stabilise the situation, that may avoid a European financial meltdown that could hurt the European economy and destabilise the global banking system. The eurozone is the third largest buyer of New Zealand exports and a major funder of our bank debt. Meanwhile, the Australian government has announced a range of tax reforms in the wake of the Henry tax review. They include a new 40% tax on super profits by mining companies and a cut in the broader corporate tax rate to 28% by 2015 from 30% now. There would also be an increase in the super levy to 12% from 9% The Henry review also proposed a tax break for bank savings and a reduction in a capital gains tax break on housing.