Author: roymorgansocial

Supermarket satisfaction: a one-horse race?

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 6-Oct-16

Roy Morgan Research has announced the winners of its Customer Satisfaction Awards for August 2016. Aldi was the top-rating supermarket chain in August, with a customer satisfaction rating of 96 per cent, ahead of Foodland (94 per cent), IGA (92 per cent), Coles (91 per cent) and Woolworths/Safeway (88 per cent). Aldi also had the highest customer satisfaction rating in six out of nine grocery sub-categories (dairy, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, meat, packaged groceries and general merchandise). Of the three remaining sub-categories, Aldi does not have deli and seafood counters.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, FOODLAND AUSTRALIA LIMITED, IGA, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKETS, AUSTRALIAN SAFEWAY STORES PTY LTD

Ditch lord mayoral car and walk, say Melbourne City Council candidates

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Clay Lucas
The Age – Page: Online : 5-Oct-16

Melbourne Lord Mayor Robert Doyle has rejected suggestions that the office-holder’s official car and driver should be dumped. Councillor Ken Ong, Phil Cleary and pollster Gary Morgan are among the candidates for lord mayor who argue that an official car is not needed and the incumbent should travel by public transport or on foot. However, Doyle says the role of lord mayor requires attendance at meetings and functions across Melbourne. Meanwhile, Morgan argues that one four-year term as lord mayor is sufficient. Doyle is seeking his third term.

CORPORATES
MELBOURNE CITY COUNCIL

Arrium pushes to free itself from state grid

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Sid Maher
The Australian – Page: 6 : 5-Oct-16

The Whyalla steelworks could become energy self-sufficient if plans put forward by Arrium’s administrator Mark Korda come to fruition. Full power has yet to be restored to the steelworks and Arrium’s iron ore mining operations following South Australia’s state-wide power outage. Korda is holding talks with the State Government and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation about financing to convert the steelworks’ energy supply to a combination of natural gas and its own waste gases.

CORPORATES
ARRIUM LIMITED – ASX ARI, KORDA MENTHA AND COLLEAGUES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. CLEAN ENERGY FINANCE CORPORATION, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES

$6bn vocational loan fiasco ends

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Julie Hare, Kylar Loussikian
The Australian – Page: 2 : 5-Oct-16

The Federal Government will introduce a new student loans scheme, amid revelations that the cost of the VET FEE-HELP scheme has blown out to $A6bn since it was launched in 2012. The scheme was exploited by many private vocational education providers, with many charging exorbitant fees for courses that had little prospect of leading to employment. The new Vocational Education and Training Students Loans scheme will impose stricter eligibility criteria for courses, while student loans will be capped.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, CORNERSTONE INVESTMENTS

Regulating profits ‘dangerous’

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Eyers, Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 5-Oct-16

Commonwealth Bank CEO Ian Narev fronted a parliamentary committee on 4 October 2016, where he responded to questions on issues such as profits, interest rates and the bank’s insurance and financial planning scandals. Narev cautioned against any move to regulate the profits of the banking sector, stressing that banks need healthy profits to ensure that they can ride out economic shocks. The CEOs of the other major banks will appear before the committee in coming days. The Australian Labor Party continues to argue the case for a royal commission into the banking sector.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMICS, FINANCE AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL PLANNING LIMITED, COMMINSURE, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

BHP, Rio spurn WA plan for upfront tax

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Tess Ingram, Julie-anne Sprague
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 5-Oct-16

Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett has again ruled out adopting a WA National Party proposal to increase the iron ore levy on BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto from $A0.25 per tonne to $A5. However, Treasurer Mike Nahan has described the levy as an anomaly, and he has held discussions with BHP and Rio regarding alternatives such as an upfront lump-sum payment. Both companies have indicated that they would not support an upfront payment.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF TREASURY AND FINANCE, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, REACHTEL PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

Morgan Stanley calls coal price peak as controls relax

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 5-Oct-16

The price of coking coal has risen by 177 per cent in 2016, and the price of thermal coal is up 55 per cent. However, Morgan Stanley believes that the Chinese Government’s move to further ease restrictions on the nation’s coal production may rein in coal prices. Meanwhile, the Singapore Exchange’s Adrian Lunt says the large difference between the contract price for coking coal in the September quarter and the spot price may prompt more producers to abandon quarterly pricing in favour of index-linked pricing.

CORPORATES
MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, SINGAPORE EXCHANGE LIMITED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, STANMORE COAL LIMITED – ASX SMR, NEW HOPE COAL AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN PACIFIC COAL LIMITED – ASX AQC, GLENCORE PLC, ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, TECK CORPORATION

Rates low enough to spur growth: RBA

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 28 : 5-Oct-16

Financial markets have priced in a 20 per cent chance that the Reserve Bank of Australia will reduce the cash rate in November 2016. The central bank left official interest rates on hold at 1.5 per cent on 4 October, and governor Philip Lowe said the board decided that the cash rate is at an appropriate level to deliver sustainable economic growth and meet the bank’s inflation target over the long-term. Lowe’s statement notably made no reference to the upcoming release of inflation data.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Origin nearing start-up on second production LNG line

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 5-Oct-16

A spokeswoman for the Origin Energy-led Australia Pacific LNG has indicated that the start-up phase for the project’s second production train has commenced. The second train is the last of the six that have been commissioned at the three rival LNG projects in Queensland. Energy Edge MD Josh Stabler says a sharp rise in gas consumption at the APLNG project in early October suggests that the second train is poised to commence production.

CORPORATES
ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AUSTRALIA PACIFIC LNG LIMITED, ENERGY EDGE PTY LTD, CONOCOPHILLIPS, SINOPEC CORPORATION, QUEENSLAND CURTIS LNG PTY LTD, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, GLADSTONE LNG PTY LTD

Presto ditched as Foxtel returns to Play

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 5-Oct-16

Foxtel will discontinue the Presto subscription video-on-demand service by the end of January 2017, after agreeing to buy out joint venture partner Seven West Media. The pay-TV group will focus on its internet-based Foxtel Play service, which will be relaunched with a bigger range of packages and lower prices. Foxtel Play will be pitched at consumers who want access to premium content but are reluctant to take out a Foxtel broadcast TV subscription.

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, FOXTEL PLAY, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, QUICKFLIX LIMITED – ASX QFX, TELSYTE PTY LTD, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, KARMA MEDIA HOLDINGS, AMAZON PRIME, HBO