Author: roymorgansocial

ABC job cuts: corporation to make as many as 100 roles redundant amid major restructure

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Original article by Amanda Meade
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 15-Jun-23

The ABC has declined to comment on reports that it is set to announce job cuts ahead of the public broadcaster’s restructuring that takes effect on 1 July. ABC MD David Anderson recently flagged the likelihood of job losses when the three existing divisions are scrapped in favour of two divisions focused on news and content. There is speculation that up to 100 jobs will be cut in the ABC’s biggest restructuring since 2017. The restructuring is part of the ABC’s transition to a digital-first model.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Business cuts a deal on workplace rules

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Original article by Jennifer Hewett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 15-Jun-23

The Australian Resources & Energy Employer Association still opposes the proposed ‘same job, same pay’ laws for labour hire workers. However, CEO Steve Knott says AREEA believes that the federal government will legislate the changes in some form, regardless of the widespread opposition. AREEA will therefore shift its focus to influencing how the policy is implemented. In contrast, AREEA had funded its own advertising campaign against the multi-employer bargaining provisions in the government’s first tranche of industrial relations reforms.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN RESOURCES AND ENERGY EMPLOYER ASSOCIATION

Lidia Thorpe withdraws accusation made in parliament of sexual assault against Liberal senator

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Original article by Josh Butler, Paul Karp
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 15-Jun-23

Controversial independent senator Lidia Thorpe has used the protection of parliamentary privilege to allege that she had been sexually assaulted by Liberal senator David Van. Thorpe interjected while Van was making a speech regarding the Brittany Higgins rape case; Thorpe stated that she feels "really uncomfortable" when a ‘perpetrator’ is speaking about violence, and accused him of sexual assault and harassment. He immediately denied her allegations. Thorpe subsequently withdraw her allegations in order to comply with Senate standing orders, but indicated that she will have more to say on the matter on Thursday.

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LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Fortescue, Rio say batteries will beat hydrogen for trucks

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 15-Jun-23

Fortescue Metals Group’s founder Andrew Forrest said in early 2021 that all of its iron ore haulage trucks would run on ‘green energy’ by 2030. He particularly emphasised the use of hydrogen and ammonia. However, Fortescue executive Christiaan Heyning has told the Energy and Mines Australia Summit in Perth that electric batteries are likely to be the primary clean energy source for mining trucks in the near-term. Fortescue’s director of decarbonisation contends that the alternative of hydrogen is currently more inefficient than batteries. Rio Tinto executive John Mulcahy has expressed a similar view.

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

Higher rates are unlikely to erase house price gains

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Original article by Nila Sweeney
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 30 : 15-Jun-23

Data from CoreLogic shows that house prices rose by 2.3 per cent nationally over the last three months, including 1.2 per cent in May. HSBC’s chief economist Paul Bloxham says factors such as rising interest rates and a slowing economy may affect the pace of growth in house prices but are unlikely to see the market retreat. The ANZ Bank’s senior economist Felicity Emmett notes that factors such as limited supply and strong demand due to immigration is putting upward pressure on housing prices, and this is likely to continue in the near-term.

CORPORATES
CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, HSBC AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence down 3.1 points to 72.7 after the RBA raises interest rates by 0.25% to 4.1% and buying conditions deteriorate

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 15-Jun-23

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence fell 3.1 points to 72.7 in the week to 11 June, to its lowest since early April 2020. Consumer Confidence has now spent 15 straight weeks below the mark of 80, the longest stretch below 80 since the index began being conducted on a weekly rather than a monthly basis in October 2008. Consumer Confidence is now 7.7pts below the same week a year ago (80.4) and 6.8pts below the 2023 weekly average of 79.5. Consumer Confidence was up in NSW, but down in Victoria, Queensland, WA and SA. Now 17% of Australians (unchanged) say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 56% (up 2ppts) say their families are ‘worse off’ financially (a new record high for this indicator). Some 28% (unchanged) of Australians now expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 40% (up 1ppt) expect to be ‘worse off’ financially (the highest figure for this indicator since August 1989). Only 6% (up 1 ppt) of Australians expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 43% (up 4ppts) expect ‘bad times’ (the highest figure for this indicator since August 2022). Meanwhile, 19% (down 2ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 57% (up 5ppts) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’ (the highest figure for this indicator since the very start of the pandemic in March 2020).

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

Secret compo: Higgins’ 40 years of lost wages

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Original article by Janet Albrechtsen, Ellie Dudley, Rhiannon Down
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 15-Jun-23

Details of the former Coalition government’s settlement with Brittany Higgins’ remain confidential, although some media reports have sugggested that her payout was up to $3m. Higgins’ draft statement of claim shows that she had sought more than $2.5m in compensation. The document stated that she had been diagnosed as medically unfit for ­employment and had little prospect of future employment. She was therefore seeking damages for economic loss, including 40 years of foregone income, as well as the loss of a potential future career in politics. Chantille Khoury from Law Partners Personal Injury Lawyers says Higgins’ payout seems "unusually high". Higgins has held several jobs since her alleged rape at Parliament House, including media adviser for the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria.

CORPORATES
LAW PARTNERS PERSONAL INJURY LAWYERS

C-suite executives’ pay increases rise past inflation

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 14-Jun-23

A new report from the Governance Institute shows that 42 per cent of directors at ASX-listed companies and 71 per cent of senior executives received a pay rise in 2022. The salaries of CEOs rose by an average of 15 per cent, while the salaries of managing directors rose by an average of 14 per cent. This compares with overall wage growth of just 3.4 per cent in 2022, according to Wage Price Index data; the inflation rate in turn was 7.8 per cent at the end of 2022. Governance Institute CEO Megan Motto says the sharp rise in executive remuneration follows several years of relatively small rises in fixed pay.

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GOVERNANCE INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Coal boom to fund Qld’s green power shift

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Original article by Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 14-Jun-23

A $1.5bn cost-of-living package is the centrepiece of the Queensland government’s 2023 budget. It includes a $550 energy rebate for all households in the state, plus a rebate of up to $1,000 for vulnerable households. Treasurer Cameron Dick does not expect the package to boost inflation, although Gene Tunny of Adept Economics notes that other states are also ramping up their expenditure, which will be taken into account by the Reserve Bank when adjusting monetary policy. Dick’s fourth budget has also allocated $19bn to pumped hydro, wind, solar and battery projects that will be owned by the government. This spending will see the budget return to deficit in 2023-24, following a record surplus of $12bn for 2022-23. A $10bn increase in coal royalties is the major contributor to the surplus.

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QUEENSLAND. TREASURY

Rio Tinto digs deep for local rail

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Original article by Tom Rabe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 14-Jun-23

Rio Tinto has struck a deal to buy 100 new locally-manufactured iron ore rail cars at a cost of $150m. The resources group typically purchases such rolling stock from China; Simon Trott, the head of its iron ore division, says that while rail cars that are made in Western Australia will cost more, it makes sense to support local manufacturing. The rail cars will initially be made by Gemco Rail in Perth, but production will eventually shift to a manufacturing and maintenance hub in the Pilbara. Trott adds that supply disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the value of local manufacturing.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, GEMCO RAIL PTY LTD