Author: roymorgansocial

Two NSW regions return to lockdown

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Original article by Mary Ward, Daniella White
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 17-Sep-21

New South Wales has recorded 1,351 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, while the state’s death toll from the current outbreak has risen by 12 for a second consecutive day. The latest fatalities ranged in age from their 40s to their 90s, and Health Minister Brad Hazzard has emphasised that 10 of these people had not been vaccinated. Meanwhile, the regional local government areas of Albury and Lismore will be placed in lockdown for at least seven days after reporting new COVID-19 cases; however, 12 regional LGAs have emerged from lockdown after case numbers stabilised.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. MINISTRY OF HEALTH

Aussie BNPL usage the best in the West

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Original article by Lachlan Moffet Gray
The Australian – Page: 19 : 17-Sep-21

Sixty per cent of Australians have used a buy now pay later (BNPL) platform, compared to 47 per cent of US or UK respondents. This is according to a survey by card issuing and payment solutions company Marqeta, with a third of survey respondents stating that they had started using BNPL platforms within the last 18 months. Marqeta country manager for Australia and New Zealand Duncan Currie says the high adoption of BNPL in Australia could in part be due to it being the home country of leading BNPL companies Zip and Afterpay.

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MARQETA, ZIP CO LIMITED – ASX Z1P, AFTERPAY LIMITED – ASX APT

Why journalists are giving up on Twitter

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Original article by Karl Quinn
Brisbane Times – Page: Online : 17-Sep-21

A growing number of Australian journalists are opting to voluntarily stop using social media site Twitter. They include Lisa Millar, the co-host of the ABC’s ‘News Breakfast’ program. Millar argues that Twitter is still the best platform for breaking news, but she got fed up with the frequent abusive comments from the platform’s users, including allegations of political bias and gender-related criticism. Millar’s ABC colleague and ‘7.30’ presenter Leigh Sales has also highlighted the "non-stop" bullying and harassment on Twitter. Dr Alex Wake of RMIT University contends that abuse of journalists on Twitter is a workplace health and safety issue, and argues that media companies have a duty of care to protect their staff.

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AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, TWITTER INCORPORATED, RMIT UNIVERSITY

Australia’s nuclear sea zone

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 3 : 17-Sep-21

Australia’s new fleet of up to eight nuclear-powered submarines will cost significantly more than the cancelled deal to build 12 French-designed conventional subs. The first of the nuclear vessels is also unlikely to enter service until the late 2030s; the first Attack-class sub had been slated to do so in 2034. However, nuclear subs can be deployed for many months at a time without needing to surface, while conventional subs must do so regularly in order to recharge their batteries. The federal government has already invested some $2.5bn in the Attack-class contract with Naval Group. The government will also extend the operational life of the existing Collins-class submarines until the new fleet is delivered.

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NAVAL GROUP

Banks demand criminal cartel case be tossed

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Original article by Hannah Wootton
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 17-Sep-21

The Federal Court has been urged to throw out a criminal cartel case against banking firms Citi, Deutsche and ANZ and five of their executives. The case relates to a capital raising by the ANZ, which Citi, Deutsche and JP Morgan were underwriting, with the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission alleging that the executives came to an "arrangement" after the capital raising to purchase a shortfall of shares to limit supply or maintain ANZ’s share price. Tim Game, SC, appearing for the ANZ, said on 16 September that the prosecution’s indictment fails to establish the particulars of the claims being made.

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FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, CITI AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Forrest hails Fortescue’s Indigenous joint venture

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 32 : 17-Sep-21

Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corporation chairman Glen Camille has welcomed a new joint venture with Fortescue Metals Group. For its part, FMG chairman Andrew Forrest says the $500 million joint venture to co-manage the development of iron ore mines in Western Australia’s Pilbara region is the largest ever contract signed with an Indigenous business organisation, and that it will expand on FMG’s Billion Opportunities program, which has awarded over $3.5 billion in contracts to Aboriginal businesses and joint ventures since 2011.

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WINTAWARI GURUMA ABORIGINAL CORPORATION, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG

Telstra CEO Andy Penn would support a Foxtel IPO

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Original article by David Swan, James Madden
The Australian – Page: Online : 17-Sep-21

Telstra CEO Andy Penn says the telco would retain its stake in Foxtel should the pay-TV and streaming group pursue a sharemarket float. He regards Telstra as a long-term investor in Foxtel, but concedes that its 35 per cent would most likely be diluted via an IPO. Penn adds that Telstra would be open to an IPO if it provided more opportunities for Foxtel in the future. He also says Foxtel’s focus on digitisation has allowed it to meet the challenges presented by streaming rivals such as Netflix.

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FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, NETFLIX INCORPORATED

France says Australia’s $90b submarine deal cancellation is a stab in the back

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Original article by Jack Hawke
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 17-Sep-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has defended the federal government’s decision to cancel the submarine contract with France-based Naval Group. He has argued that decisions must be made in the best interests of national security, and stressed that France is still an important partner in the Pacific region. However, France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has criticised the decision to ditch the contract in favour of nuclear-powered submarines, arguing that the relationship of trust between the two nations has been broken.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, NAVAL GROUP

Worried miners call for China olive branch

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 17-Sep-21

The Association of Mining & Exploration Companies is concerned about how China may react to Australia’s new defence pact, and that its response might include sanctions that hurt the mining sector. AMEC CEO Warren Pearce has urged the federal government to make efforts to rebuild its trading relationship with China. He has also urged Australia to extend an ‘olive branch’ to China by stating that it welcomes any foreign investment, so long as it is not in industries that are linked to defence. Members of AMEC include Fortescue Metals Group, OZ Minerals and Roy Hill.

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ASSOCIATION OF MINING AND EXPLORATION COMPANIES, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, OZ MINERALS LIMITED – ASX OZL, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD

NSW to review COVID-19 hotspot boundaries across Sydney suburbs

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Original article by Lucy CormackMary Ward
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 15-Sep-21

New South Wales has recorded 1,127 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, as well as two additional deaths from the current outbreak. Meanwhile, the state government is under growing pressure to review its hotspot boundaries and ease the lockdown restrictions for Sydney suburbs that have low case numbers and high vaccination rates. Deputy Chief Health Officer Jeremy McAnulty says the state’s hotspots are assessed on a daily basis. The proportion of NSW residents aged 16+ who have received at least one vaccine dose is expected to reach 80 per cent on 15 September.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. MINISTRY OF HEALTH