The Australian
 reports that Patrick boss Chris Corrigan was crying
crocodile tears last night after the competition regulator knocked back
his takeover bid for rail-freight company FCL, placing a big question
mark over the chances of Toll Holdings’ hostile $4.3 billion bid for
Patrick succeeding. Who would have thought that Chris Corrigan’s arch enemy,
ACCC chairman Graeme
Samuel, would become his saviour, says Elizabeth Knight in The SMH.
Toll’s bid now looks to be dead in
the water thanks to Samuel’s decision, which suggests pretty clearly
that the competition regulator will
frown upon any further concentration in this industry. While the Toll
camp claimed there was still room move, there now seems little chance
of winning approval for the Patrick bid short of a court challenge
against ACCC or a claim on the grounds of public benefit, says
Chanticleer’s John Durie in the Fin Review.

But the ACCC ruling in some respects helps Toll, says Stephen Bartholomeusz in The Age, because it knew it
would have to divest FCL if the Patrick purchase was cleared. The
ACCC has helpfully taken the concentration issue off the table but
the larger issue of its attitude to complete vertical integration
has yet to be resolved.

The Fin Review reports that just two months after new rules
allowing employees to choose their super fund took effect, the regime
is already dogged by controversy, including allegations people are
being unlawfully blocked from switching their contributions to a new
fund.

And Westpac has announced that chief financial officer Phil
Chronican will take over as head of its institutional bank in
December, prompting speculation the 48-year-old is being groomed
for the top job, reports The SMH.

On Wall Street, US stocks ended higher overnight on a drop in crude-oil prices to a three-week low and broker
upgrades for blue chip stocks Hewlett-Packard, J.P. Morgan Chase &
Co. and McDonald’s. The Dow ended up 44.26 points at 10,633 – Market Watch has a full report here.