Author: roymorgansocial

Labor forces Medicare retreat

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 : 20-Jun-16

The future of Medicare was on the agenda for both major political parties on 19 June 2016. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull ruled out the privatisation of Medicare or any of its services. The Federal Government had previously flagged plans to outsource Medicare’s back-office functions. However, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten claims that the Government still plans to dismantle the existing Medicare system. He has also committed to blocking a proposal to reduce bulk-billing incentive payments for pathology and radiology services.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES. MEDICARE AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS AUSTRALIA (INTERNATIONAL) PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA POST, NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORPORATION, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS

Poor getting a foot on the ladder, according to RBA

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Original article by Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 17-Jun-16

Researchers from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) have found no evidence of growing inequality in Australia. A study published in the RBA’s quarterly research bulletin shows that the bottom 20 per cent of households experienced an increase in their wealth by more than 21 per cent between 2010 and 2014. Other social groups were less fortunate, with stagnation in wealth of the middle class and a fall in wealth of the richest 20 per cent of the Australian society.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Maurice Blackburn has $11m bill as horse flu case collapses

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Original article by Marianna Papadakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 17-Jun-16

Law firm Maurice Blackburn has abandoned its class action against the Federal Government over the horse flu outbreak in 2007. A settlement proposed by the Government contains no compensation offer as there was no admission of liability on the part of the Government for the infection of horses with the virus which escaped from the Eastern Creek Quarantine Station near Penrith, New South Wales. Maurice Blackburn’s legal costs are around $A11 million.

CORPORATES
MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER RESOURCES, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Kivalu avoids jail over blackmail

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 17-Jun-16

Union organiser Halafihi Kimonu Kivalu has changed his plea from not guilty to guilty to two charges of blackmail. A covert recording of a telephone conversation provided evidence that he received $A70,000 from a building contractor. In the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory on 16 June 2016, Kivalu received a suspended jail sentence of two years and nine months.

CORPORATES
SUPREME COURT OF THE AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Fetch TV renews Dodo deal, adds Presto, 9Now and Spike

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 17-Jun-16

Pay television service Fetch TV has renewed its partnership with M2’s Dodo. Its platform has been expanded by the addition of new services such as Spike TV, subscription streaming service Presto and free-to-air streaming service 9Now. Fetch TV has a target of 600,000 subscribers by the end of 2016. In May 2016, it reached the figure of 400,000 subscribers.

CORPORATES
FETCHTV PTY LTD, DODO AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, M2 ENTERTAINMENT, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, SPIKE (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, ASTRO, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM

LNG price pain is still to come

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 17-Jun-16

Oversupply in the LNG Asian market could force some of Australia’s LNG producers to reduce capacity. Fereidun Fesharaki, chairman of consultancy FGE, says prices will be under pressure. The price of LNG in north Asia has declined to about $US4.50 per million British thermal units from about $US20 in early 2014, and further declines are likely.

CORPORATES
ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, FGE

Early rally fades but Brexit fears remain

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Original article by Stephen Cauchi
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 17-Jun-16

The S&P/ASX200 index closed 0.02 per cent lower at 5,146.0 on 16 June 2016. It seems that investors are preoccupied with the possibility of Great Britain leaving the European Union. A referendum on the issue will be held on 23 June 2016. Crown Resorts’ demerger plans were welcomed by investors who pushed the stock up by 13.2 per cent to $A12.75. Gold stocks performed well, with Newcrest Mining gaining 2.9 per cent to $A22.54, Evolution Mining rising 4.7 per cent to $A2.43, and Northern Star Resources climbing 5.1 per cent to $A5.09.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, EVOLUTION MINING LIMITED – ASX EVN, NORTHERN STAR RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX NST, BANK OF JAPAN, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, MELCO CROWN ENTERTAINMENT LIMITED

Law firms ‘sleepwalking towards a disaster’

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Original article by Marianna Papadakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 17-Jun-16

Law firms should prepare themselves for the challenge posed to them by artificial intelligence. Ted Dwyer, of Dwyer Consulting, says the impact of artificial intelligence will be severe and law firms have only around five years to rearrange their services. Not only junior lawyers but also their older colleagues will be affected, particularly in areas such as electronic discovery, document automation, compliance and contract analysis.

CORPORATES
DWYER CONSULTING PTY LTD, DLA PIPER, IBM CORPORATION, GOOGLE INCORPORATED

Roy Morgan State of the Nation 24: Focus on Politics the 2016 Federal Election

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: online : 17-Jun-16

Roy Morgan Research has presented the latest Australia State of the Nation, with the focus on the 2016 Federal Election. Economic issues are still the main concern for Australians. The 7-Eleven wage exploitation scandal and a Fair Work Commission ruling against Coles have made voters sensitive to problems related to industrial relations. Australia’s real unemployment level is much higher than suggested by official figures. Roy Morgan’s unemployment & under-employment rate is at 18.1 per cent, versus the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ unemployment figure of 5.7 per cent. Australians’ voting intentions suggest that Malcolm Turnbull will to be re-elected as Prime Minister on 2 July 2016.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, 7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, COLES GROUP LIMITED, REPUBLICAN PARTY (UNITED STATES), AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, VICTORIA. COUNTRY FIRE AUTHORITY, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, PALMER UNITED PARTY, JACQUI LAMBIE NETWORK, GLENN LAZARUS TEAM, JOHN MADIGAN’S MANUFACTURING AND FARMING PARTY, DERRYN HINCH’S JUSTICE PARTY, FAMILY FIRST PARTY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY

‘Move Canberra to South Australia’

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: online : 17-Jun-16

Australia’s economic problems could be solved by shifting the country’s political centre from Canberra to South Australia. Michele Levine, the CEO of Roy Morgan Research, believes that the end of the mining boom is a serious challenge for Australian politicians. Regrettably, Federal politicians in Canberra are "detached from reality". The relocation of the capital to South Australia would open their eyes to the real issues facing Australians on a day-to-day basis. The Federal Government must increase workplace productivity, eliminate the cash economy, be tougher on government and corporate corruption, stimulate competition in the private sector, introduce more transparency in government tenders and improve government data collection.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, ARRIUM LIMITED – ASX ARI, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET