Author: roymorgansocial

Insurance jobs under threat from technology

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Original article by Ruth Liew
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 8-Dec-15

Suncorp Group executive Darren O’Connell notes that the growing use of automation in the insurance sector has resulted in the elimination of entry-level jobs in the underwriting industry. He says this will result in a dearth of underwriters with expertise across the industry as older staff retire and their skills and knowledge are lost. O’Connell argues in a research paper that technology can never completely replace people in the underwriting industry, and insurers should reconsider their recruitment procedures.

CORPORATES
SUNCORP GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUN, SWISS RE AUSTRALIA LIMITED, IBM CORPORATION

ASIC puts heat on unlawful spruikers

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Original article by Duncan Hughes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 33 : 7-Dec-15

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission will continue to target individuals and companies that promote the use of self-managed superannuation funds to invest in the property market. The Australian Taxation Office estimates that SMSFs account for about 33 per cent of the $A1.7bn that is held by super funds. Meanwhile, the value of limited-recourse loans taken out by SMSFs has blown out from around $A755m to $A15bn in the last five years.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, PARK TRENT PROPERTIES GROUP PTY LTD, SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES, OMNIWEALTH PTY LTD, SUPERANNUATION WAREHOUSE AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Iron ore slides below $US40

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Original article by Alexander Liddington-Cox
The Australian – Page: Online : 7-Dec-15

The price of benchmark iron ore for immediate delivery to China’s port of Tianjin has fallen by 2.3 per cent to $US39.40 a tonne, compared with $US40.30 previously. Daniel Haynes of the ANZ Bank expects the price of the steel input to remain subdued during the next month.

CORPORATES
PORT OF TIANJIN, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Rio closing the gap for title as biggest miner

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 18 : 7-Dec-15

The market capitalisation of BHP Billiton was $A92bn at the end of the week ended 4 December 2015, according to data from Bloomberg. Rio Tinto’s capitalisation was $A79bn. BHP has been the world’s largest miner since 2001, and its market capitalisation exceeded that of Rio by about $A90bn in mid-2014, but this briefly narrowed to about $A10bn during the last week. BHP’s market value has been hit by a number of factors in 2015, including the South32 spin-off, uncertainty regarding its dividend payout and the downturn in commodity prices.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, BLOOMBERG LP, ALCAN INCORPORATED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC

Atlassian on the verge of record-breaking float in the US

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 7-Dec-15

Australian software developer Atlassian is reportedly due to list on the Nasdaq stock exchange on 10 December 2015, although this has yet to be confirmed. The group’s IPO is expected to be worth about $US350m, with its shares likely to be issued at between $US16.50 and $US18.50 apiece. Data from Renaissance Capital shows that the number of technology IPOs in the US has fallen from 55 in 2014 to just 22 so far in 2015.

CORPORATES
ATLASSIAN SOFTWARE SYSTEMS PTY LTD, NASDAQ, RENAISSANCE CAPITAL CORPORATION, MYOB GROUP LIMITED – ASX MYO, GARTNER GROUP INCORPORATED, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, MORGAN STANLEY AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES

7-Eleven affair a signal to franchisors

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Original article by Adele Ferguson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 40 : 7-Dec-15

A revised franchise agreement that has been proposed by 7-Eleven Australia indemnifies head office for any future liability for underpaid staff. However, the convenience store chain has agreed to pay the first $A25m of any claims for unpaid wages that are received by the independent wage review panel that was set up in response to the wage exploitation scandal. Franchisees will be required to pay the next $A5m worth of claims, but head office will equally share any liability for claims beyond this sum. This has significant implications for other franchisees, amid claims that the wage scandal is not limited to 7-Eleven.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, BAKER’S DELIGHT HOLDINGS LIMITED, UNITED PETROLEUM PTY LTD, SUBWAY SANDWICHES PTY LTD, DOMINO’S PIZZA ENTERPRISES LIMITED – ASX DMP, PIZZA HUT AUSTRALIA, EAGLE BOYS PIZZA, NANDO’S AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, 7-ELEVEN FRANCHISE ASSOCIATION, LEVITT ROBINSON

Ad market set for election bounce in 2016, say sales bosses

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Original article by Dominic White
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 30 : 7-Dec-15

Australia’s commercial TV networks are upbeat about the outlook for the advertising market in 2016. Seven West Media’s chief revenue officer Kurt Burnette notes that there was 11 per cent growth in the ad market in 2004, which is the last time the Olympics and a federal election were held in the same year. Optimism about the ad market in 2016 will also be bolstered by the national census in August.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, PACIFIC MAGAZINES PTY LTD, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, YAHOO!7 COMMUNICATIONS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, MULTI CHANNEL NETWORK PTY LTD, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, OZTAM PTY LTD

Turnbull government holds North Sydney after swing

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 7-Dec-15

Liberal Party candidate Trent Zimmerman has won the federal seat of North Sydney, despite a 13 per cent swing against the Australian Government. The by-election on 5 December 2015 followed the retirement of former treasurer Joe Hockey, who had secured 66 per cent of the primary vote in the 2013 federal election. The Australian Labor Party chose not to field a candidate in the by-election.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Turnbull’s bright idea: $1bn to drive innovation

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Original article by Philip Hudson, Sid Maher
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 7-Dec-15

A capital gains tax exemption for investors in business start-ups will be included in the Australian Government’s innovation and science statement, which will be launched on 7 December 2015. Meanwhile, a new cabinet committee will be responsible for co-ordinating the government’s expenditure on research and science, while the CSIRO will receive around $A100m in additional funding. The package is also believed to include measures aimed at encouraging more people to study sciences, technology, ­engineering and mathematics.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, CSIRO, DATA61, NATIONAL ICT AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, OZEMAIL LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

News Corp grabs stake in hipages

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Original article by Darren Davidson, Damon Kitney
The Australian – Page: 23 : 7-Dec-15

News Corp Australia executives Brett Clegg and Alisa Bowen are expected to become directors of hipages following a strategic alliance between the two companies. News Corp has bought a 25 per cent stake in the home improvement portal, which provides householders with free quotes from tradespeople such as plumbers and electricians. Hipages was founded in 2004 and now boasts 200 employees. Seven West Media and Fairfax Media were also interested in investing in hipages.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, HIPAGES GROUP PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, FAIRFAX MAGAZINES, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, SERVICE SEEKING PTY LTD, THUMBTACK, GOOGLE CAPITAL, SEQUOIA CAPITAL LLP, ELLERSTON CAPITAL PTY LTD, RIGHT CLICK CAPITAL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD