Author: roymorgansocial

Masters Home Improvement never a threat

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 15-Dec-16

Home Hardware is the winner of the Hardware Store category in the Roy Morgan Customer Satisfaction Awards for October 2016, satisfying 90% of its customers. Bunnings and Mitre 10 share second spot with 89% each, while Masters Home Improvement is fourth (85%). Only True Value Hardware satisfies a lower proportion of its customers (78%) than the now-defunct Masters. While a satisfaction level of 85% is nothing to be ashamed of, it is relatively low in the traditionally high-scoring Hardware Store category, and it is Masters’ lowest score since February. The beleaguered chain has been stuck in fourth place all year, seemingly incapable of overtaking any of its higher-rating rivals. Indeed, since Roy Morgan started measuring Masters’ customer satisfaction in late 2011 (the year it opened its first stores), it has never risen higher than fourth spot, and actually spent all of 2012, 2013 and 2014 in fifth position.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, HOME HARDWARE, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, MITRE 10 LIMITED, MASTERS HOME IMPROVEMENT AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TRUE VALUE HARDWARE LIMITED

Crackdown on cash economy targets billions

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Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 14-Dec-16

The Federal Government’s Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook will include the creation of a taskforce aimed at combating the cash economy. It will be headed by former KPMG executive Michael Andrew, and one of its priorities will be to investigate the large number of $A100 notes that are in circulation, despite the growing trend toward electronic payments. The taskforce’s final report will be delivered in October 2017. It is estimated that the cash economy accounts for about 1.5 per cent of Australia’s GDP, which equates to $A21bn.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, KPMG, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT. AUSTRALIAN TRANSACTION REPORTS AND ANALYSIS CENTRE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION, CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL AUDIT OFFICE, HSBC AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. BOARD OF TAXATION, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

US hike won’t deter the RBA from following suit

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 28 : 14-Dec-16

The US Federal Reserve’s monetary policy statement is likely to attract more scrutiny than the outcome of its December 2016 meeting, as it is generally expected to lift the cash rate by 25 basis points. Meanwhile, the fall in National Australia Bank’s latest business conditions survey may strengthen the case for the Reserve Bank of Australia to further reduce official interest rates, particularly in the wake of the higher-than-expected decline in GDP growth for the September quarter.

CORPORATES
UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE, FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF ST LOUIS, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Somersby and Strongbow leading the cider boom

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 14-Dec-16

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that the number of Australians aged 18+ who drink cider in an average four weeks has risen by almost 600% between 2006 and 2016, from just 337,000 to 2,349,000. The only other alcoholic beverage to have gained popularity over the same period was spirits, which saw a more moderate growth of 25% (rising from 3,890,000 to 4,861,000 drinkers in an average four weeks). Between January and March 2016, nearly 3 million people (2,880,000) reported having consumed cider at least once in the last four weeks, compared with 2,250,000 in the quarter preceding it (October-December 2015) and 2,220,000 in the quarter following it (April-June 2016). This pattern is evident for all January-March quarters over the last 10 years. Somersby was the most popular cider brand in the year to September 2016, with some 724,000 Australian adults drinking it in an average four weeks (up from 460,000 in 2015).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, SOMERSBY, STRONGBOW CIDER COMPANY, 5 SEEDS, REKORDERLIG, BULMER

Price jump agreed for coking coal

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 16 : 14-Dec-16

The contract price for premium hard coking coal has been settled at $US285 per tonne for the March 2017 quarter, compared with a contract price of $US200 per tonne in the final quarter of 2016. There has been a sharp rise in the price of coking coal in 2016, and the contract price was below $US81 per tonne in the March quarter. Meanwhile, Marian Hookham of IHS Markit says producers of pulverised coal injection (PCI) coal hope to secure a contract price of about $US190 per tonne for the first quarter of 2017.

CORPORATES
IHS MARKIT, GLENCORE PLC, NIPPON STEEL AND SUMITOMO METAL CORPORATION, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, TECK CORPORATION

Forrest now third richest as iron ore rally delivers $5.3bn windfall

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Original article by Chris Kohler
The Australian – Page: 19 & 28 : 14-Dec-16

Bloomberg estimates that the net worth of Fortescue Metals Group founder Andrew Forrest has risen to $A7.34bn, making him the third-wealthiest individual in Australia. The 244 per cent rise in Fortescue’s share price during 2016 has boosted his wealth by $A5.34bn. The stock is currently trading at around $A6.43, compared with just $A1.45 in January. The iron ore price has risen by nearly 92 per cent in 2016, although BHP Billiton CEO Andrew Mackenzie is among those who believe that the recent rally is not sustainable.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, BLOOMBERG LP, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, VISY INDUSTRIES AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

PM’s GST floor to stem mine tax leakage: Grylls

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Original article by Andrew Burrell
The Australian – Page: 6 : 14-Dec-16

The Minerals Council of Australia has released a report which suggests that Western Australia would lose $A2.02bn worth of GST revenue if it increased the iron ore levy. However, WA National Party leader Brendon Grylls argues that this analysis excluded the impact of the Federal Government’s proposed "floor" for the distribution of GST revenue. The state would be likely to retain most of the proceeds of the levy, as its share of GST revenue has fallen well below the proposed floor of about $A0.70 in the dollar.

CORPORATES
MINERALS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Gary Morgan comment on Roy Morgan real unemployment unchanged at 9.2% in November

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Original article by Gary Morgan, Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 14-Dec-16

Australia’s continuing high level of real unemployment and under-employment – now above 2 million for a 14th straight month – has persistently indicated the weakness in the broader Australian economy, which has now been confirmed by Australia’s first quarter of negative GDP growth since the March quarter 2011. The ABS announced last week that Australian GDP shrunk 0.5% in the September quarter 2016. The election of Donald Trump in the US last month proves that politicians who take the concerns of their people seriously will find electoral success. Trump consistently asserted during his campaign that real unemployment in the US was far higher than the figures quoted by the official Bureau of Labor Statistics – over 20%, and perhaps even over 30%. The Turnbull Government must learn the lesson provided by Trump’s election without delay.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Australian drivers most satisfied with Japanese cars

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 14-Dec-16

Across all 35 categories in the Roy Morgan Customer Satisfaction Awards, car manufacturers have the highest overall rate of customer satisfaction. Some 92 per cent of drivers report being very or fairly satisfied by their current vehicle make. A division of Toyota, Lexus leads the way with 96 per cent of its drivers satisfied. Fellow Japanese manufacturers Mazda and Subaru satisfy 95 per cent of their owners. Six manufacturers are tied with 94 per cent satisfaction among drivers, including Japanese brands Toyota, Honda, Suzuki and Isuzu UTE, South Korea’s Hyundai and Germany’s Mercedes-Benz. While there are over 15 million satisfied drivers across the country, there are also over 540,000 who are dissatisfied with their current car brand – and they are eager to replace it. Dissatisfied drivers are twice as likely as others to intend to buy a new car within the next year (7 per cent). Overall, the number of Australians planning to buy a new car in the next 12 months rose marginally in November to 569,000. The total number of prospective buyers over the next four years is unchanged since October at 2,264,000.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, LEXUS, MAZDA MOTOR CORPORATION, SUBARU, TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION, HONDA MOTOR CORPORATION, SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATION, ISUZU UTE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY LIMITED, MERCEDES-BENZ AG

Australian real unemployment steady at 9.2% (1.199m Australians); Under-employment down 1.5% to 8.4% (1.1m)

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 14-Dec-16

In November 2016 a total of 2.299 million Australians, 17.6% of the workforce, were either unemployed (1,199,000) or under-employed (1,100,000). This is down 237,000 (down 2%) from November 2015. Unemployment is comparable to a year ago with 1.199 million Australians now unemployed (up 13,000 in a year but steady at 9.2% due to overall growth in the workforce). These real unemployment figures are substantially higher than the current ABS figure for October 2016 (5.6%). In November, the Australian workforce increased to 13,046,000 (up 92,000 since November 2015), and total employment increased to 11,847,000 (up 79,000). Full-time employment is now 7,950,000 – up 374,000 from a year ago (7,576,000 in November 2015). In contrast, part-time employment has decreased by 295,000 to 3,897,000 over the past year (an average of just under 25,000 per month). The lower part-time employment contributed to the fall in under-employment; now 8.4% of Australians 1,100,000 (down 250,000 since November 2015) are under-employed (down 2%).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS