The lack of adequately skilled staff is slowing production at Whitehaven Coal, while also boosting costs as it has been forced to turn to external specialists to help close the gap.

The NSW coal producer is expanding production at its Narrabri mine, in the state’s north west, but work is being hampered by a lack of skilled staff, which is delaying progress.

The stage one development is for up to 2.5 million tonnes of coal, which will rise to 6 million tonnes a year when the present expansion is concluded.

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”Weekly development advance continues to be hampered by the lack of availability of skilled underground miners,” it said in its December production report to the ASX today.

”This is preventing full utilisation of the four continuous miner units which are available and has resulted in a shortfall of approximately 509 metres against first half year plan to December, 2011,” it said.

An additional external contractor, SDB-Delta, has brought in experienced staff to boost development work at the mine, while internal employees are being trained for longwall mining equipment operation.

”If performance continues at the current rate, longwall commissioning is expected in mid to late April,” it said.

December quarter saleable coal production rose 2 per cent year on year to 1.1 million tonnes, but with total coal sales declining 22 per cent to 1.4 million tonnes.

Earnings continue to be hampered as well by the need to purchase coal to meet contractual commitments, although at a lower rate than previously as output levels improve, it said, with a further 330,000 tonnes of legacy contracts due to be delivered in the March quarter.

March quarter coking coal prices are expected to run at $US184 a tonne, up from around $US179 in the December quarter.

Steaming coal delivered into the Japan market for the 12 months to March 2012 have been fixed at $US124 a tonne, it said, which is higher than the ex-Newcastle spot market price of $US117 a tonne.

  Bank of Canada Goveror Mark Carney.

Economists will be paying close attention to the Bank of Canada’s interest rate announcement Tuesday, but not because they’re looking for a rate hike.

The main focal point will be changes to the bank’s growth and inflation outlook, as well as the balance of risks. Below we outline three things economists will be looking for during the bank’s announcement.

Dovish or hawkish?

As far as the overnight lending rate, which is currently at 1%, the likelihood of a surprise hike (or cut) on Tuesday is nearly nil, said Avery Shenfeld, chief economist with CIBC Economics.

But Tuesday’s announcement will likely bring a change of tone, he added.

“Given developments since the prior issue, Governor Carney’s team has no choice but to alter its message and, in the process, sound just a shade less dovish,” Mr. Shenfeld said.

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AAP

The South Australian and federal governments are negotiating to provide a funding package to car maker Holden to ensure the future of the company’s Australian assembly operations.

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill says Holden’s parent company, General Motors (GM), is considering closing its Australian operations.

We are, of course, urging GM not to pursue that option, Mr Weatherill said.

However, we recognise that car making is a global industry.

The SA premier is in the US where he joined federal Manufacturing Minister Kim Carr in talks with GM chief executive Dan Akerson on the future of Holden’s operations.

That includes discussions on an investment package from the state and federal governments that will help secure Holden’s future and also the future of local component suppliers.

In the light of ongoing speculation about Holden’s future in Australia, I have come to Detroit to put South Australia’s case for being a strong part of GM’s future global plans, Mr Weatherill said.

Today we received a clear message from Mr Akerson and (Holden boss Mike) Devereux that they are committed to working with government to secure Holden’s future in Australia and, in particular, the Elizabeth plant.

The SA premier said it was likely the future of car making in Australia would involve a smaller but more secure industry.

This will require us to build on those elements of our local industry which are world class and to lift standards in the balance of our industry, he said.

This will be achieved through the agreement we are currently negotiating with General Motors.

This agreement will involve co-investment by state and federal governments and a much closer working relationship with General Motors and Holden and component suppliers in Australia.

As part of the discussions, GM has agreed to establish a working group to look at increasing opportunities for local component suppliers in global markets.

Mr Weatherill has not disclosed the level of funds the two governments will commit, but said the package would be significant.

Mr Devereux said Holden and the state and federal governments had a strong mutual desire to retain Holden’s capabilities in design, engineering and manufacturing.

But he said there was unprecedented competition for capital investment in manufacturing and product development for the next generation of global vehicles.

Car makers are investing billions of dollars to develop future vehicles, so it’s critical for Australia to have consistent and competitive long-term polices that make this country an attractive place for General Motors and other companies to continue to invest, he said.

The discussions with the minister and the premier have been very positive and productive.

We’re making good progress in developing a new co-investment plan to help secure a long-term future for Holden and the automotive and manufacturing industry more broadly.

NEW YORK – Stock index futures fell on Wednesday after a sharp market rally in the previous session, as investors focused again on Europe’s debt problems.

Shares of European banks dropped on concerns a tight credit market will make it expensive for them to raise capital and for euro-zone countries to refinance debt. .EU

Italy’s biggest bank UniCredit sank nearly 10 percent after it priced a 7.5 billion euro capital hike at a 43 percent discount.

And in a sign of how wary European banks are of lending to each other, commercial lenders’ overnight deposits at the European Central Bank hit a new record high of 453 billion euros, data showed.

A huge sovereign refinancing cycle is kicking off in the euro zone in the first quarter, with traders worried that debt-laden countries such as Italy and Spain may have to pay high prices to meet their needs.

“The market is pressured by European banks today, but this could change once again once we get a good set of economic data,” said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York.

“The momentum is still to the upside, and economic data will be the main theme as we get through the first month of the year.”

Data on November factory and durable goods orders are due at 10 a.m.

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Holiday shopping traffic may be light so far this year, but purchases are up, says one retail developer. And the shift is now turning from self purchases to holiday gift shopping.

“People are getting more serious about their shopping,” said Karen MacDonald, spokeswoman for the Taubman Group, which owns 25 shopping centers around the country including Metro Detroit malls Fairlane Town Center, Twelve Oaks Mall, Great Lakes Crossing Outlets and The Mall at Partridge Creek.

Jennifer Skalecki and her friend Nicole Hadrian, both of Roseville, did some shopping Saturday afternoon at Eastland Mall in Harper Woods. Hadrian shopped for herself at Macy’s while Skalecki bought Christmas presents for her boyfriend.

Skalecki said she’s already finished shopping for her children. Her purchases included lots of toys and bicycles for the kids, as well as shoes, cologne and clothes for her boyfriend.

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