Author: roymorgansocial

BHP bolsters Brazil team as probe into ‘deadly’ dam looms

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Barry FitzGerald
The Australian – Page: 18 : 23-Dec-15

BHP Billiton has appointed US law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton to examine the causes of the tailings dam failure at its Samarco iron ore joint venture in Brazil. Meanwhile, Flavio Bulcao has been appointed as BHP’s country ­director for Brazil, while chief commercial officer Dean Dalla Valle will lead the resources group’s response to the disaster. BHP recently disputed a United Nations report on the toxicity of the tailings, which have polluted the River Doce.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, SAMARCO MINERACAO SA, VALE SA, UNITED NATIONS, CLEARY GOTTLIEB STEEN AND HAMILTON LLC, BRAZIL. MINISTRY OF HEALTH

More Australians going online first thing, but radio is still top breakfast media

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 21-Dec-15

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that 73.1 per cent of Australians aged 14+ used one or more forms of media at breakfast time on an average weekday in the year to September 2015. The survey also shows that 18 per cent of Australians go online at breakfast, compared with 16.6 per cent a year and 8.2 per cent four years ago. However, 58.6 per cent of Australians still use one or more traditional morning media at breakfast time: 27.7 per cent listen to radio (down from 29.2 per cent a year ago), 24.0 per cent watch television (up from 22.8 per cent a year ago) and 16 per cent read newspapers (virtually unchanged over the past year).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED

Iron ore’s jump to more than $US40 a tonne unlikely to last

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jens Meyer
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 22-Dec-15

The spot price of iron ore for delivery to China’s Port of Qingdao recently recovered to $US40.10 per tonne, after falling to $US38.30 in early December 2015. However, most analysts surveyed by Reuters do not expect a significant rebound in the iron ore price in 2016. The median forecast is that iron ore with 62 per cent content for delivery to China will average $US47/tonne. However, Clarksons Platou Futures’ Kelly Teoh forecasts an average price of $US38.50/tonne.

CORPORATES
REUTERS HOLDINGS PLC, CLARKSONS PLATOU FUTURES, PORT OF QINGDAO, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, ROY HILL IRON ORE PTY LTD

Vale to fight decision to freeze assets

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Barry FitzGerald
The Australian – Page: 14 : 22-Dec-15

Brazilian miner Vale intends to mount a legal challenge to a court’s decision to freeze its Samarco iron ore assets. The Samarco project is jointly owned by Vale and BHP Billiton. A Brazilian judge has ruled that they may be liable for the tailings dam disaster, as project operator Samarco Mineracao lacks sufficient funds to finance environmental remediation and compensate victims of the tragedy. The Samarco stake is BHP’s sole asset in Brazil.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, VALE SA, SAMARCO MINERACAO SA

The good, the bad and the ugly of 2015

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 14 : 22-Dec-15

The rise in Blackmores’ share price from $A35 to more than $A200m was one of the highlights of 2015 for investors and financial markets. Others include the profit turnaround of Qantas, the US IPO of Atlassian, the sale of Toll Holdings to Japan Post for $A6.5bn and the commencement of exports from Gina Rinehart’s Roy Hill iron ore project. On the downside, a number of stocks have fallen sharply in 2015, including BHP Billiton, Dick Smith Holdings and Slater & Gordon, while embattled retailer Woolworths has issued several profit downgrades and is yet to stem losses at its Big W and Masters businesses.

CORPORATES
BLACKMORES LIMITED – ASX BKL, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, ATLASSIAN CORPORATION PLC, TOLL HOLDINGS LIMITED, JAPAN POST COMPANY LIMITED, ROY HILL IRON ORE PTY LTD, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, DICK SMITH HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX DSH, SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES, MASTERS HOME IMPROVEMENT AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SWISSE WELLNESS PTY LTD, INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INCORPORATED, APPEN LIMITED – ASX APX, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, SCEPTER PARTNERS, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, ANCHORAGE CAPITAL PARTNERS PTY LTD, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, VOCATION LIMITED – ASX VET, AUSTRALIAN CAREERS NETWORK LIMITED, ORICA LIMITED – ASX ORI, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION

Qantas and Singapore Airlines set flight path for customer satisfaction success

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 21-Dec-15

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey, which was carried out in the year to October 2015, has found that 7.6 million Australians aged 14+ fly on a domestic airline in an average four weeks. Meanwhile, 4.6 million Australians travel with an international airline and 1.9 million fly domestic business class. The October Roy Morgan Research Customer Satisfaction Awards shows that Qantas had a customer satisfaction rating of 84 per cent in the categories of Domestic Airline and Domestic Business Airline, ahead of Virgin Australia (82 per cent and 78 per cent respectively. Singapore Airlines (91 per cent) and Emirates (88 per cent) had the highest satisfaction ratings in the category of International Airline.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, VIRGIN AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX VAH, SINGAPORE AIRLINES LIMITED, EMIRATES AIRLINES, AIR NEW ZEALAND LIMITED – ASX AIZ, THAI AIRWAYS INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC COMPANY LIMITED

Australia forecast to follow Fed on rates

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Mark Mulligan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 22-Dec-15

The Australian dollar has strengthened in the wake of the US Federal Reserve’s decision to increase interest rates. There is growing speculation that the Reserve Bank will begin tightening monetary policy in 2016, with BT Investment Management forecasting that the cash rate will rise from two per cent to 2.5 per cent. Michael Blythe of the Commonwealth Bank expects monetary policy to remain unchanged, while the ANZ Bank has forecast that the cash rate will be cut to 1.5 per cent.

CORPORATES
UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, BT INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED – ASX BTT, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, MARKET ECONOMICS PTY LTD, BANK OF AMERICA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

Eviction, then litigation ramps up blueblood battle on Collins Street

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Sarah Danckert, Nick Lenaghan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 22-Dec-15

The Supreme Court of Victoria’s Justice Clyde Croft has criticised Impact Investment Group’s actions in locking Roy Morgan Research out of its premises in Melbourne’s CBD. Justice Croft ruled that the market research firm must be allowed back into 401 Collins St, and said Impact’s actions were inappropriate given that the dispute between the parties was already the subject of court proceedings. Roy Morgan Research has withheld rent payments since September due to a dispute over work on the building’s lifts and the amount of time the work is expected to take.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, IMPACT INVESTMENT GROUP PTY LTD, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA

Business blasts IR blueprint

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 22-Dec-15

Business leaders have criticised the Productivity Commission for failing to deal with the complexity of Australia’s workplace relations system. Scott Barklamb, executive director of the Australian Mines & Metals Association, said the commission was too cautious in its recommendations. Kate Carnell, the CEO of the Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry, described the report as "an opportunity lost". The commission has proposed reducing Sunday penalty rates in certain industries to the level of Saturday rates. Employment Minister Michaelia Cash said the issue will be determined by a Fair Work Commission review.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN MINES AND METALS ASSOCIATION (INCORPORATED), THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Farmers applaud subsidy cut but say it’s just a start

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 22-Dec-15

New South Wales wheat, barley and canola farmer John Booker has welcomed the World Trade Organization’s decision to abolish agricultural export subsidies. He does not expect to benefit immediately from the decision, but he is optimistic about the long-term gains. Tony Mahar of the National Farmers Federation argues that the domestic support subsidies that some countries provide to farmers must also be scrapped.

CORPORATES
WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION, NATIONAL FARMERS’ FEDERATION LIMITED, CATTLE COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN DAIRY INDUSTRY COUNCIL