The Reserve Bank is facing a new headache as a big drop in company spending adds to the evidence that the rest of the Australian economy is struggling to take up the slack from the slowdown in mining. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported business spending expectations for the three months to December fell by a greater than expected 5.2 per cent. The first estimate of 2014-15 capital expenditure expectations, which analysts said would give a sense of the recovery in the non-mining sectors of the economy, came in at $124.9 billion, according to the figures released today. The result was well below consensus ... (full story)