Author: roymorgansocial

ALP maintains election winning lead over Coalition in early May for third straight week: ALP 52% cf. L-NP 48%

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 7-May-24

The Albanese Labor Government has retained the lead for the third week in a row with support unchanged on 52%, ahead of the Coalition on 48% (also unchanged) on a two-party preferred basis. If a Federal Election were held now the ALP would be re-elected with a slim majority as they have now, the latest Roy Morgan survey shows. Despite a clear election winning lead, primary support for the ALP dipped 1.5% to 30% this week. The news early last week that a grandmother in Perth had been bashed in a home invasion by a freed immigration detainee put further pressure on the government’s policy on immigration detention over the week. Support for the Coalition increased 0.5% to 37% while support for the Greens dropped 1% to 13%. Looking at the minor parties, support for One Nation was up 0.5% to 6%. Support for Independents was up 0.5% to 8.5% and support for Other Parties was up 1% to 5.5%. The latest Roy Morgan survey is based on interviewing a representative cross-section of 1,666 Australian electors from April 29 to May 5. Further details will be released in Roy Morgan’s weekly video update presented by CEO Michele Levine.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, MORGAN POLL, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY

Canberra cash critical for offshore wind energy’s future

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Original article by Rachel Baxendale
The Australian – Page: 6 : 7-May-24

Victorian is seeking to generate 2GW of electricity from offshore wind by 2032 and as much as 9GW by 2040, as part of its renewable energy target of 95 per cent by 2035. The state government has announced that it is on track for its first offshore wind auction in 2025, while Victorian Energy Minister Lily’Ambrosio has stated that federal government funding is essential to Victoria’s goal of an offshore wind industry. However, energy market expert David Leitch does not think Victoria is the ideal location for renewable energy, and that it may need to become a net importer of renewable energy that has been generated in other states.

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VICTORIA. DEPT OF ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE ACTION

Labor to crack down on dirty money for homes

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Original article by Campbell Kwan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 & 32 : 7-May-24

The federal government is set to expand money-laundering reporting obligation laws to cover real estate agents, lawyers and accountants, with the potential that 100,000 extra entities will have reporting obligations if the legislation is passed. However, the Real Estate Institute of Australia claims that expanding money-laundering obligations to cover real estate agents would impose an overwhelming burden on them, and that the legislation should instead expand the reporting obligations of land registry bodies. It contends that not all real estate transactions are handled by real estate agents.

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THE REAL ESTATE INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Chalmers to fight inflation, then spend

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Original article by Ronald Mizen
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 7-May-24

The federal government’s budget on 14 May will show that Australia’s gross debt has risen to $904bn in 2023-24; this is about $152bn lower than was forecast ahead of the 2022 federal election. However, the nation’s debt-to-GDP ratio is expected to rise from 33.7 per cent in the current financial year to 35.1 per cent by 2025-26. Meanwhile, Treasurer Jim Chalmers has signalled that combating inflation will be the key focus of the 2024 budget, while he has flagged an increase in government spending over the forward estimates period.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Female directors have no financial impact on businesses: ANU review

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Original article by Patrick Durkin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 7-May-24

A research paper from the Australian National University’s Crawford School of Public Policy has concluded that a company’s financial performance is not affected by the gender of new appointments to its board. The research paper is based on an analysis of 1,721 non-executive directors who were appointed by 2,483 listed companies between 2000 and 2016. The authors found that the appointment of a female director to the board had no significant impact on a company’s share price in the days following the announcement. However, 30% Club chair Nicola Wakefield Evans has questioned the validityh of the findings, noting that the proportion of female directors at ASX-listed companies has risen strongly since 2016.

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AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY. CRAWFORD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY, 30% CLUB

Hamas accepts Gaza ceasefire proposal as Israel strikes Rafah

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Original article by Sam Mednick, Josef Federman, Bassem Mroue
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 7-May-24

Hamas has confirmed that it will accept a ceasefire proposal that is being brokered by mediators Qatar and Egypt in the latest attempt to end the war with Israel. Details of the proposed ceasefire have not been disclosed, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says it does not meet his nation’s essential demands; however, Netanyahu has indicated that he will send negotiators to continue talks on the deal. Meanwhile, the Israeli Defense Forces have confirmed that "targeted strikes" have begun in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, where about 1.4 million Palestinians have sought refuge. Israel advised people in Rafah to evacuate the town ahead of the military operation.

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Telstra delays 3G shutdown over triple zero calls

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Original article by Savannah Meacham
The New Daily – Page: Online : 7-May-24

Telstra has delayed the shutdown of its 3G network until 31 August, in order to give customers people more time to upgrade their devices to enable them to make triple zero emergency calls. Currently around 400,000 devices are 4G enabled, but they still depend on the 3G network to make emergency calls. Federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland has warned that some people may think their device is operating normally after August, but they will find it will not work when they try to make an emergency call if they have not upgraded it.

CORPORATES
TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS

High-profile backers give BHP green light for improved Anglo bid

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 7-May-24

Argo Investments’ Andy Forster believes that BHP’s takeover bid for Anglo American makes sense, but he adds that BHP will need to sweeten its bid in order to gain the target’s support. He adds that BHP must adopt a "disciplined" approach to the takeover bid. Wilson Asset Management has also expressed support for BHP’s takeover bid; WAM Leaders Fund portfolio manager Matt Haupt notes that Anglo American’s copper assets will generate synergies for BHP, and he believes that the latter has the capacity to increase its offer by 5-10 per cent.

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BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, ARGO INVESTMENTS LIMITED – ASX ARG, WILSON ASSET MANAGEMENT, WAM LEADERS LIMITED – ASX WLE

Former PM Gillard to chair $2bn energy fund

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 14 : 7-May-24

HMC Capital has announced that former prime minister Julia Gillard has agreed to chair the newly created $2 billion HMC Capital Energy Transition Fund, which will make investments in energy assets such as wind, battery and bio-fuels. Gillard said she was "excited and honoured" by her appointment, noting it was in the nation’s interests to make the most of its abundant sources of renewable energy, while for his part, HMC Capital CEO David Di Pilla said he was "absolutely delighted" that someone of Gillard’s global standing and experience had agreed to chair the new fund.

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HMC CAPITA LIMITED – ASX HMC, HMC CAPITAL ENERGY TRANSITION FUND

ASX tipped to hit 8300 this year, defying rate talk

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Original article by Joanne Tran
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 7-May-24

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 reached a record high of 7,896.9 points in early April; despite the recent pullback it has still gained about 0.6 per cent so far in 2024. UBS equity strategist Richard Schellbach is amongst the market watchers who are bullish about the outlook for the ASX 200, forecasting that it will top 8,000 points by the end of this year. VanEck Australia in turn has a year-end target of 8,300 points, while David Bassanese from Betashares expects the index to reach 8,250 by the end of 2024.

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STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, VANECK AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BETASHARES CAPITAL LIMITED