Author: roymorgansocial

PM calls for unity amid the unease

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 5 : 17-Apr-24

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese convened a meeting of cabinet’s National Security Committee on Tuesday morning in response to the stabbing of a Christian bishop, which has been designated a terrorist attack by NSW police. Albanese says the attack is being investigated by a joint counter-terrorism team. He has urged Australians to unite, and stressed that respect for each other must be maintained at all times. ASIO’s director-general Mike Burgess says the terrorist attack appears to be religiously motivated, but he adds that the 16-year-old perpetrator seems to have acted alone. Burgess also says Australia’s terrorism threat level remains at ‘possible’.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, asio see AUSTRALIAN SECURITY INTELLIGENCE ORGANISATION

NACC for Higgins compo deal truth

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Original article by Ellie Dudley
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 17-Apr-24

Former NSW judge Anthony Whealy says the $2.445m compensation payout to alleged rape victim Brittany Higgins should be investigated by the National Anti-Corruption Commission. Healy says the NACC could not "ignore altogether" the findings of Federal Court judge Michael Lee in Bruce Lehrmann’s failed defamation case against the Ten Network; Justice Lee found that Higgins had told a number of untruths regarding the alleged incident at Parliament House in March 2019. Former Western Australian judge Kenneth Martin in turn says Justice Lee’s findings mean that the federal government may be able to seek to recover the payout to the former Liberal staffer.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. NATIONAL ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence up 1.6 points to 83.5 – the highest for over two months since early February

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 17-Apr-24

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rose 1.6pts to 83.5 in the week to 14 April; however, despite the increase the index has now spent a record 63 straight weeks below the mark of 85. Consumer Confidence is now 6.3 points above the same week a year ago (77.2), and virtually identical to the 2024 weekly average of 83.0. Consumer Confidence was up in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, but down in Western Australia and South Australia. Now 22% of Australians (up 3ppts) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 50% (down 3ppts) say their families are ‘worse off’. Looking forward, 33% (up 2ppts) of Australians expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 33% (unchanged) expect to be ‘worse off’. Now 11% (up 1ppt) of Australians expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 33% (up 2ppts) expect ‘bad times’. Meanwhile, 23% (up 2ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 47% (unchanged) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Roy Morgan Business Confidence drops 3.5pts to 98.0 in March as the index fails to build on momentum of positive result in February

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 17-Apr-24

In March 2024, Roy Morgan Business Confidence was 98.0 (down 3.5pts since February) as the index fell back into negative territory despite the Reserve Bank leaving interest rates unchanged. Business Confidence is now 13.2pts below the long-term average of 111.24). However, Business Confidence is up 4.4pts since March 2023. Driving the index lower in March was less confidence about the performance of the Australian economy. Now 43.9% (down 3.7ppts) of businesses expect ‘good times’ for the economy over the next year, while just 38.9% (down 4.3ppts) expect ‘good times’ over the next five years. In contrast to the economy more broadly, businesses have grown significantly more confident about their own prospects over the year ahead, with 49.6% (up 4.8ppts) expecting to be ‘better off’ this time next year; this is the highest rating for this indicator since February 2022. The latest Roy Morgan Business Confidence results for March are based on 1,605 detailed interviews with a cross-section of Australian businesses from each State and Territory.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Religious freedom challenge for Rio and BHP’s US copper mine

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 17-Apr-24

BHP and Rio Tinto are facing another legal challenge to their joint venture Resolution Copper project in Arizona. The plaintiffs from the San Carlos Apache tribe are seeking to overturn a 2014 deal to transfer federal land to the joint venture; this land includes an area known as Oak Flat, which is regarded as a sacred site by Native Americans. The case will be argued on the basis that disturbing a sacred site would breach the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Resolution is slated to produce 40 billion pounds of copper concentrate over four decades.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, RESOLUTION COPPER MINING LLC

IMF warns of stalling progress to reduce inflation

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 2 : 17-Apr-24

The International Monetary Fund now expects global economic growth of 3.2 per cent in both 2024 and 2025. However, the IMF notes that the outlook remains uncertain due to factors such as China’s embattled property sector and the risk that wars in Europe and the Middle East will escalate. The IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook report also notes that the global economy is still "remarkably resilient", and it is optimistic that central banks will be able to achieve a soft landing for economies. The IMF has forecast economic growth of 1.5 per cent for Australia in 2024, and two per cent next year.

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INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND

US and EU consider new sanctions against Iran after its air attack on Israel

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Original article by Peter Beaumont, Julian Borger
The Guardian – Page: Online : 17-Apr-24

The Israeli government has advised that it is still considering its response to Iran’s recent missile and drone attack; however, Israel says its response will be ‘calibrated’ to limit further escalation of the conflict in the Middle East. Meanwhile, US treasury secretary Janet Yellen says sanctions will be part of the Biden administration’s strategy to disrupt Iran’s "malign and destabilising activity". The European Union is also considering new sanctions on Iran, which has indicated that the attack on Israel was justified due to the recent airstrike on its consulate in Syria.

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UNITED STATES. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

First-timers, low earners in housing crunch

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Original article by Nila Sweeney
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 17-Apr-24

A report from the ANZ Bank shows that the average proportion of income that is needed to service a new mortgage rose to 48.9 per cent nationwide in the March quarter; this compares with 43.1 per cent during the same period in 2023. The ANZ Housing Affordability report also reveals that it now takes an average of 10.3 years to save enough money for a house deposit. Meanwhile, ANZ found that the average renter must now allocate 32.2 per cent of their income to rent; this rises to 54.3 per cent for low-income earners.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Big investors steer clear of Fortescue, and miss major rally

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Original article by Joshua Peach
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 17-Apr-24

Analysis shows that pure-play iron ore miner and ‘green’ hydrogen aspirant Fortescue is now the least-held top-10 ASX-listed stock among institutional investors. Just one portfolio manager at more than 30 actively managed Australian equity funds has disclosed a substantial position in Fortescue so far in 2024. Fund managers have cited a number of reasons for shunning Fortescue, such as lower iron ore grades than its key rivals, the high turnover within Fortecue’s leadership team and its rising expenditure on hydrogen projects. However, Fortescue’s shares significantly outperformed BHP and Rio Tinto between September and February.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE LIMITED – ASX FMG, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Roy Morgan Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023: automotive and airline winners

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 17-Apr-24

The annual Roy Morgan Customer Satisfaction Awards were awarded in early April, and there were several familiar faces in the automotive and airline winner’s circle. Car Manufacturer of the Year Skoda won a second straight Annual Customer Satisfaction Award. Skoda performed exceptionally well during 2023 by winning 10 monthly awards with an average customer satisfaction of 97.1% – a record high for the category and the second highest for any company. Kia was a first-time winner of the Major Car Manufacturer of the Year; Kia took home five monthly awards to edge out rivals Subaru and Mitsubishi for the overall title, with average customer satisfaction of 91.9%. Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines won the International Airline of the Year award for a fourth straight year (2018, 2019, 2022 & 2023 – the award was not held during the pandemic-impacted years of 2020 and 2021). Virgin Australia won all 12 monthly awards to win the Domestic Airline of the Year for the first time in a decade, and Qantas won the Domestic Business Airline of the Year for the first time since 2020.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, SKODA AUTOMOBILOVA AS, KIA MOTORS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SINGAPORE AIRLINES LIMITED, VIRGIN AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS LIMITED, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN