THE NEWS WRAP: Yahoo fires CEO Carol Bartz

Surprisingly strong consumer spending and increased investment led to a 1.2% growth in GDP in the June quarter, new figures have revealed.

The National Accounts figures follow a 1.2% drop in GDP in March. It’s expected that the economy will grow by 1.4% over the course of 2011.

However, the news wasn’t entirely positive, with unincorporated businesses continuing to struggle and exports still hampered by the after-effects of the Queensland floods.

Yahoo CEO exits

Yahoo’s chief executive Carol Bartz has been fired, via the telephone, after a combative period in charge of the once-dominant online portal.

Bartz, who had been in charge since 2009, told staff that she had been fired by the chairman of the board. It follows a period in which she clashed with industry figures and failed to keep pace with runaway rivals such as Facebook.

Unions attack Joyce pay packet

Unions have hit out at Alan Joyce after it was revealed the Qantas CEO has received a 71% increase in his annual pay packet, to $5 million.

The airline’s annual report shows that Joyce’s pay rose from $2.9 million to $5 million during the year to June 30, despite Qantas’ shares dipping by 16% during this period.

Unions are angry at the pay rise due to Qantas’ plans to axe around 1,000 jobs in order to improve its overseas performance.

Overnight

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.47% to 11414.86. The Australian dollar was up to 106.54 US cents.