Author: roymorgansocial

Cheesemaker shelling out for more peanuts

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Original article by Sue Neales
The Australian – Page: 6 : 12-Mar-18

Demand for peanuts in Australia is growing by eight per cent per annum, but production of peanuts is "stagnant" at 20,000 tonnes a year. Grower Ben Poggioli notes that many growers are getting older and leaving the industry, and that prices have not changed much in the last 10 years. Bega Cheese, which acquired the recipe and manufacturing rights in Australia to the former Kraft peanut butter from Mondelez in 2017, is hoping to revitalise peanut growing in Australia, partly through a commitment to use only Australian-grown peanuts in its Bega peanut butter.

CORPORATES
BEGA CHEESE LIMITED – ASX BGA, MONDELEZ AUSTRALIA (FOODS) LIMITED, PEANUT COMPANY OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Union blitz on work laws

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Original article by Ben Schneiders
The Sunday Age – Page: 4 : 11-Mar-18

The ACTU will launch an eight-week advertising campaign on 11 March, aimed at getting Australia’s workplace laws changed through the election of a federal Labor government. The ACTU’s advertisements hit out at big business, and depict workers complaining about lack of work security and struggling to pay their bills. Employer groups contend that current workplace laws give too much power to unions as it is. The ACTU’s campaign is its biggest since its anti-Work Choices campaign against the Howard government between 2005 and 2007, on which it spent $A14.4 million.

CORPORATES
ACTU, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Critics won’t stop Carmichael coal mine: Adani Australia boss Jeyakumar Janakaraj

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Original article by Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 12-Mar-18

Adani Australia CEO Jeyakumar Janakaraj has attacked the amount of misinformation being spread by opponents of its proposed $A16.5 billion Carmichael coal mine. He notes that the mine has already secured over 100 approvals, and that Australia’s investment reputation would be at risk if a future government scrapped a project that had already secured appropriate government approvals. Janakaraj noted that forecast strong global energy demand over the next two decades made the Carmichael mine an economically viable project.

CORPORATES
ADANI MINING PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY

Back to the drawing board for Footy Show

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: Online : 12-Mar-18

Nine director of sport Tom Malone is planning to make some tweaks to the rugby league version of the "Footy Show", after some aspects of the first program for 2018 were seen as somewhat underwhelming by viewers. The show underwent a number of changes during the off-season, with Erin Molan replacing Paul Vautin as host and former executive producer Glenn Pallister no longer with the show. Meanwhile, ratings for Nine’s first rugby league match of the season, which saw St George Illawarra Dragons beat the Brisbane Broncos 34-12, were down 5.6 per cent year-on-year.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NATIONAL RUGBY LEAGUE, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Sharp rise in social media abuse calls for defamation law reform

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Original article by Dana McCauley
The Australian – Page: Online : 12-Mar-18

The proportion of defamation cases emanating from digital publication – be it social media, a blog or a news web site – has risen from 17 per cent to 53 per cent over the 10 years to 2017, according to the Centre for Media Transition at the University of Technology, Sydney. The Centre also found that the majority of "digital defamation" cases over the period between 2013 and 2017 did not involve paid journalists. Peter Fray, professor of journalism practice at UTS, claims people are becoming addicted to defamation, and that Australian defamation laws need to change.

CORPORATES
UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FACEBOOK AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GOOGLE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BAUER MEDIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PRESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

Network Ten focused on Big Bash League, Cricket Australia calls for bids by Easter

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Original article by Max Mason, John Stensholt
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 12-Mar-18

Cricket Australia wants bids for its next broadcasting deal to be submitted by Easter, with tender details sent to interested parties in the week ending 9 March. Ten is said to be very keen to retain the rights to the Big Bash League, and could potentially bid as much as $A60 million a year. Nine and Fox Sports are understood to be planning a bid that would cover all Cricket Australia’s broadcasting rights, including the BBL. Cricket Australia is said to be seeking a deal of around $A150 million a year.

CORPORATES
CRICKET AUSTRALIA, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, CBS CORPORATION, KORDA MENTHA AND COLLEAGUES PTY LTD

Donald Trump takes to Twitter to confirm Aussie tariff exemption

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Original article by Karen Sweeney
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 12-Mar-18

The US and Australia are looking at ways to exempt Australia from proposed tariffs on steel and aluminium. President Donald Trump has used Twitter to confirm he and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull are in discussions along these lines. The US is planning to impose 25 per cent tariffs on steel and 10 per cent tariffs on aluminium. Innes Willox, the CEO of the Australian Industry Group, while welcoming the possibility of exemptions, noted they would only apply to shipments from Australia, and not from shipments from Australian firms in other markets. See below for Trump’s tweet.

CORPORATES
UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

Business Confidence in 2018 driven by larger businesses

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 12-Mar-18

In Australia, Business Confidence declined 3.5pts (-5.2%) to 120.0 in February 2018, according to the latest Roy Morgan Business Single Source survey. However, despite the month-on-month fall, Business Confidence has begun 2018 with the best two-month performance since 2014 – driven largely by businesses with an annual turnover of $5 million or more. A clear majority of businesses, 56.1% (up 0.8ppts), say now is a ‘good time to invest’ in growing the business, while February Roy Morgan Business Confidence remains just above the weekly ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence, which is at 119.0 on March 3/4, 2018.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Australians back at work in February, full-time employment hits record

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 12-Mar-18

A Roy Morgan survey shows 1.31 million Australians were unemployed in February (9.7% of the workforce); an increase of 57,000 (up 0.3%) on a year ago. In addition 1.21 million Australians (10.2% of the workforce) are now under-employed, working part-time and looking for more work, a rise of 73,000 in a year (up 0.4%). The same survey also showed that 12,228,000 Australians were employed in February – an increase of 133,000 over the past year equal to an average of just over 10,000 jobs added per month. The increase in employment year on year was driven entirely by an increase in full-time employment which rose 249,000 to a record high 8,153,000 while part-time employment fell 116,000 to 4,075,000. Roy Morgan real unemployment figures of 9.7% for February are substantially higher than the current ABS estimate for January 2018 of 5.5%.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Turnbull’s NEG may be dire for energy market

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Original article by Mark Ludlow, Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 12 : 9-Mar-18

The CEOs of 10 small electricity retailers have warned that the Federal Government’s proposed National Energy Guarantee could result in higher electricity prices. They have cautioned the Energy Security Board against making significant changes to the energy system, noting that an additional 3,800 megawatts of low-emissions electricity will become available in the next several years and a further 40,000 megawatts has been proposed. ERM Power’s founder Trevor St Baker also warns that the NEG could increase the market power of the three largest electricity retailers, which also generate electricity.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ENERGY SECURITY BOARD, ERM POWER LIMITED – ASX EPW, 1ST ENERGY, COVAU, LOCALITY PLANNING ENERGY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LPE, ENERGY LOCALS, CLICK ENERGY, WINCONNECT, NEXT BUSINESS ENERGY, GLOBIRD, BLUENERGY GROUP LIMITED, COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENTS, CLIMATE COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, GRATTAN INSTITUTE