Author: roymorgansocial

BoE raises rates for the first time in a decade, but the pound tumbles

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Original article by
abc.net au – Page: Online : 3-Nov-17

The British pound has fallen against the US and Australian currencies in response to the Bank of England’s decision to increase its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 0.5 per cent. It was the central bank’s first increase in official interest rates since 2007, and two members of its Monetary Policy Committee voted against a rate rise amid concerns about sluggish growth in wages and the economy.

CORPORATES
BANK OF ENGLAND, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK

Donald Trump nominates Jerome Powell as Fed chair

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Original article by Kate Davidson, Peter Nicholas
BBC.com – Page: Online : 3-Nov-17

US President Donald Trump has nominated Jerome Powell to succeed Janet Yellen as chair of the Federal Reserve. He is widely tipped to maintain the Federal Reserve’s current approach to tightening monetary policy, and financial market experts are generally supportive of the decision to select Powell over the other four candidates for the role, who included Yellen. Powell’s appointment must be confirmed by the Senate.

CORPORATES
UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

NAB wields axe despite $6.6bn profit

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 3-Nov-17

National Australia Bank has posted a 2016-17 cash profit of $A6.64bn, which is 2.5 per cent higher than previously. The earnings of its business banking division rose by 6.3 per cent to $A2.8bn in the year to September 2017, while its consumer banking and wealth division reported earnings growth of 4.3 per cent to $A1.6bn. NAB has revealed plans to slash costs by $A1bn by 2020. This will include the loss of 6,000 jobs, which equates to about 18 per cent of its workforce, although NAB also intends to recruit 2,000 people with digital and technology skills as part of its focus on automation.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, CLYDESDALE BANK PLC, NIPPON LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CLSA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Stokes questions merger logic

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Original article by Jemima Whyte
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 3-Nov-17

Seven West Media will reduce its costs by $A25m via staff cuts, as part of a broader strategy to slash its costs by $A105m over two years. Meanwhile, chairman Kerry Stokes has told shareholders that Seven has not held any merger talks with Fairfax Media or News Corp, and he suggested that merging a TV network with a print media company may offer few synergies. He also said Seven is trialling a combined TV and print newsroom in Perth, which could influence whether Seven pursues mergers or acquisitions in the media sector.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, CBS CORPORATION, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, CGI GLASS LEWIS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN SHAREHOLDERS’ ASSOCIATION, ENERGY QUEENSLAND, HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS PTY LTD

Fairfax goes it alone as investors back Domain split

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Original article by Dana McCauley
The Australian – Page: 21 : 3-Nov-17

The majority of Fairfax shareholders at its 2017 annual meeting voted in favour of demerging the Domain property listings business. Fairfax will retain a 60 per cent stake in Domain, while shareholders will receive one share in Domain for every 10 Fairfax shares that they own. Meanwhile, Fairfax CEO Greg Hywood has stressed that the company’s print newspapers will continue to be published for some time, while chairman Nick Falloon indicated that Fairfax would be open to merger deals following the relaxation of cross-media ownership laws.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, DOMAIN.COM.AU, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, TRONC INCORPORATED, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Minister rebuffs ACTU pay push

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 2 : 3-Nov-17

The ACTU is seeking to have the minimum wage increased to 60 per cent of the median wage. This would equate to an $A80-per-week rise in the minimum wage, which ACTU secretary Sally McManus says should be phased in as quickly as possible. However, employers’ groups warn that a sharp rise in the minimum wage would deter businesses from taking on more staff, while Employment Minister Michaelia Cash has ruled out any changes to the existing minimum wage regime.

CORPORATES
ACTU, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Bulls to run all year but risks build for 2019

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 30 : 3-Nov-17

The S&P 500 has gained 15.2 per cent so far in 2017, while the S&P/ASX 200 has risen by just 4.7 per cent. They have gained 17 per cent and 8.5 per cent respectively when dividends are included. John Normand of JP Morgan expects equities to continue to rally in 2018, although he says the S&P 500 is likely to record growth in the low double-digits when dividends are taken into account. Meanwhile, he is bearish about the outlook for government bonds, and warns that there are a number of risk factors for global financial markets in 2019.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, JP MORGAN AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK, BANK OF JAPAN, ORGANISATION OF PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES

Fortescue faces 70pc value hit from iron ore discount

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 30 : 3-Nov-17

Fortescue Metals Group’s lower-grade iron ore is trading at a discount of about 30 per cent to the benchmark price. Sam Webb of Credit Suisse estimates that Fortescue’s net present value could fall to $A1.40 per share if the this discount persists. Webb adds that Fortescue’s future capital expenditure and exploration plans may be affected if the price discount is sustained until mid-2018. Credit Suisse has a share price target of $A6.10 on Fortescue. The stock rose 4.06 per cent to $A4.87 on 2 November.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED

CFMEU agrees to 35pc cut to Griffin Coal pay

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 3-Nov-17

Workers at Griffin Coal’s Collie mine in Western Australia face reduced working hours and pay rates under a proposed enterprise agreement. The new pay deal, which would cut hourly pay rates by 25 per cent and annual earnings by 35 per cent, has the support of the Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union. State secretary Gary Wood says both unions and Griffin have accepted compromises to secure the pay deal, amid uncertainty regarding future bank financing for the mine.

CORPORATES
THE GRIFFIN COAL MINING COMPANY PTY LTD, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, LANCO RESOURCES, AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING WORKERS’ UNION, ICIC BANK

Digital news ad revenue climbs 8.5%, but print falls 14%

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Original article by Zoe Samios
Mumbrella – Page: Online : 2-Nov-17

Data from NewsMediaWorks shows that the Australian news media’s digital advertising revenue rose by 8.5 per cent year-on-year to $A119.6m in the September 2017 quarter. The rise in digital ad revenue coincided with the launch of revamped versions of major newspaper websites by Fairfax Media and News Corp Australia. Meanwhile, print advertising revenue was 14.3 per cent lower at $A365.1m and revenue from newspaper inserts was down 12.4% at $A17.3m. Programmatic ad revenue was 44.5% higher at $A12.1m.

CORPORATES
NEWSMEDIAWORKS, SMI MEDIA INCORPORATED, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS