Union backs new media plan

Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 2 : 7-Jul-17

Senator Nick Xenophon has proposed a range of measures aimed at preserving media diversity in talks with Communications Minister Mitch Fifield regarding cross-media ownership reforms. Media, ­Entertainment & Arts Alliance CEO Paul Murphy has welcomed Xenophon’s proposal to provide tax breaks for small and regional publications. Abolition of the "two-out-of-three" rule remains a stumbling block for the Federal Government, with continued opposition from the Australian Labor Party and One Nation.

CORPORATES
MEDIA, ENTERTAINMENT AND ARTS ALLIANCE, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED

Spitting chips: workers accuse potato giant of ‘wage theft’

Original article by Anna Patty
The Age – Page: 4 : 6-Jul-17

The National Union of Workers has warned that extending the industrial award for farm workers to people who work in packing and storage sheds could result in wage cuts of up to eight per cent. Potato grower Mitolo Group has applied to the Fair Work Commission to have the scope of the Horticulture Award broadened to include non-farm gate workers, but the NUW argues that such staff should be covered by the Storage Services Award.

CORPORATES
MITOLO GROUP PTY LTD, NATIONAL UNION OF WORKERS, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

Labor to embrace free-trade agenda

Original article by Greg Sheridan
The Australian – Page: 5 : 6-Jul-17

The Australian Labor Party’s foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong will warn against any push toward protectionist trade policies in a Lowy Institute speech on 6 July. Wong will stress Labor’s commitment to open trade and globalisation, arguing that trade barriers are not in the nation’s interests. She will also highlight the importance of Australia’s long-standing alliance with the US and the need to further strengthen the relationship between the two nations. Establishing closer ties with Asia will also be a feature of Labor’s foreign policy.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LOWY INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL POLICY

Optus to power National Geographic app

Original article by Supratim Adhikari
The Australian – Page: 27 : 6-Jul-17

Optus has secured a deal to provide its postpaid mobile phone customers with exclusive content from National Geographic. The app will allow Optus customers to watch two live National Geographic TV channels and access the digital editions of its magazines. Ben White, the head of marketing and product at Optus, says the telco will also produce content in partnership with National Geographic. Customers will be able to view National Geographic content without any impact on their monthly data allowance. Optus has previously secured English Premier League rights.

CORPORATES
SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, FOX NETWORK

Alarm over ruling on casual staff

Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 6-Jul-17

The Australian Retailers Association has warned that smaller retailers in particular will be hard hit by a ruling that some casual employees will be entitled to become permanent staff after 12 months’ employment. The Fair Work Commission’s ruling applies to casual employees who are covered by 85 industrial awards, although the FWC rejected the ACTU’s push for casual employees to be given working shifts of at least four hours. The FWC will allow employers to refuse to convert casual staff to permanent employees if they have reasonable grounds to do so.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, ACTU, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

Top rate to swamp 1.2m taxpayers

Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 6-Jul-17

Analysis of data from the Parliamentary Budget Office suggests that 7.3 per cent of Australians – or nearly 1.2 million people – will be paying the highest marginal tax rate in 2028, compared with just three per cent in 2015. The PBO data also shows that the Federal Government’s total income tax revenue will rise from about $A177bn in 2016 to $A378bn in 2028. The projections are based on expectations that Australia’s population will rise to 29.1 million over the next decade.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY BUDGET OFFICE, THE CENTRE FOR INDEPENDENT STUDIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Party over with bondcano ready to erupt

Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 27 : 6-Jul-17

The yield on 10-year US Treasuries peaked at 2.35 per cent in early July 2017, compared with a record low of 1.32 per cent in mid-2016. Credit Suisse forecasts that the yield will reach 2.8 per cent by the end of 2017, as some of the world’s leading central banks begin tightening monetary policy. Hasan Tevfik of Credit Suisse warns that Australian-listed "bond proxy" stocks in particular are vulnerable to rising bond yields.

CORPORATES
CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, SYDNEY AIRPORT – ASX SYD, APA GROUP – ASX APA, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, DEXUS PROPERTY GROUP – ASX DXS, ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, SONIC HEALTHCARE LIMITED – ASX SHL, MEDIBANK PRIVATE LIMITED – ASX MPL, TATTS GROUP LIMITED – ASX TTS, AUSNET SERVICES LIMITED – ASX AST, HEALTHSCOPE LIMITED – ASX HSO, TABCORP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TAH, MACQUARIE ATLAS ROADS GROUP – ASX MQA, CHARTER HALL GROUP – ASX CHC, INVESTA OFFICE FUND – ASX IOF, BWP TRUST – ASX BWP, COMPUTERSHARE LIMITED – ASX CPU, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX, GRAINCORP LIMITED – ASX GNC, ECLIPX GROUP LIMITED – ASX ECX, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, ORGANISATION OF PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK, BANK OF ENGLAND, BANK OF CANADA, INSTITUTE FOR SUPPLY MANAGEMENT

AusSuper optimistic on equity outlook

Original article by Sally Patten
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 6-Jul-17

AustralianSuper has posted a return of 12.4 per cent for 2016-17, due to a strong performance by asset classes such as infrastructure, Australian shares and global shares. Chief investment officer Mark Delaney is upbeat about the outlook for sharemarkets in 2017-18, although he cautions that investors should expect lower returns than in 2016-17. He adds that share prices are unlikely to be significantly affected by the prospect of interest rate increases in countries such as the US.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIANSUPER PTY LTD, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, CHANT WEST FINANCIAL SERVICES PTY LTD

BHP could spin off petroleum: analyst

Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 6-Jul-17

Bernstein analyst Paul Gait says BHP Billiton could potentially divest its petroleum and potash assets under incoming chairman Ken MacKenzie. Several institutional investors support a proposal by activist hedge fund Elliott Management for BHP to spin off its US petroleum division. Gait suggests that MacKenzie may be more objective about BHP’s future strategy given his lack of experience in the mining sector.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, BERNSTEIN INVESTMENT RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT, ELLIOTT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION, TRIBECA GLOBAL NATURAL RESOURCES FUND, ABERDEEN ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED

Fortescue tipped to hit export guidance

Original article by Tess Ingram
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 6-Jul-17

Fortescue Metals Group had forecast that it would export about 170 million tonnes of iron ore in 2016-17. Analysts expect its export volumes to be at the higher of its guidance, although its exports for the June quarter will need to be around 44 million tonnes. BHP Billiton’s iron ore shipments for the year are also expected to be at the higher end of its guidance. Meanwhile, Peter O’Connor of Shaw & Partners expects the iron ore price to retreat to around $US50 per tonne in the second half of 2017.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD