Author: roymorgansocial

Biden time for divided US

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Original article by Cameron Stewart
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 6-Nov-20

Democrats candidate Joe Biden has signalled that signing the Paris Agreement on climate change will be a key priority if he wins the presidential election. The US withdrew from the agreement under President Donald Trump, who has launched a legal challenge to the election results in several key swing states. Biden has yet to declare victory, but he only needs to win one of the states of Nevada, Pennsylvania, Georgia or North Carolina to reach the threshold of 270 electoral college votes, while Trump must win all four states.

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DEMOCRATIC PARTY (UNITED STATES)

China spat puts $149bn trade at risk

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Original article by Will Glasgow, Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 8 : 5-Nov-20

There is growing concern that the Chinese government is set to impose bans on more Australian imports. Wine producers have become the latest casualty of escalating tensions between the two nations, with Chinese customs officials preventing them from exhibiting at the China International Import Expo. The lobster industry has also been targeted, with a shipment worth more than $2m having to be destroyed after it was delayed at a Chinese airport. Unconfirmed media reports in China have suggested that a widespread ban on Australian imports – including coal, copper and sugar – will take effect on 6 November.

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Masks here to stay, says Dan Andrews

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Original article by Kieran Rooney
Herald Sun – Page: 14 : 5-Nov-20

Victoria has recorded five consecutive days with no new coronavirus cases; there are now just 30 active cases across the state, and Melbourne’s 14-day rolling average of new cases has fallen to 1.7. Premier Daniel Andrews says the state government is on track to announce a further easing of lockdown restrictions on 8 November. However, he has cautioned that wearing a face mask in public places is likely to remain mandatory in the near-term, arguing that Victorians must not become complacent. Meanwhile, there are 49 active locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in NSW.

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VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET

Binding deed puts Amatil a step closer to European takeover

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 5-Nov-20

Coca-Cola European Partners has completed due diligence on Coca-Cola Amatil and entered into a binding scheme implementation deed with the Australian-listed company. The proposed $9bn takeover requires the support of at least 75 per cent of CCA shareholders and approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board. Shareholders are likely to vote on the scheme of arrangement in March. Some of CCA’s institutional shareholders consider the cash offer of $12.75 per share to be opportunistic.

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COCA-COLA AMATIL LIMITED – ASX CCL, COCA-COLA EUROPEAN PARTNERS PLC, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD

Interesting times for US pollsters

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Original article by Michele Levine, Gary Morgan, Julian McCrann
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 5-Nov-20

Not since 1948 has US polling been so poorly regarded. Regardless of whether or not Donald Trump is re-elected, he has proven the polls wrong again. Since the 1960s, we at Roy Morgan have known, and reported, that with polling there is a bias towards the party or leader that everyone ‘thinks will win’. This is especially the case with telephone polls, robo-polling and online polls. In the US this phenomenon (the bias towards the party/leader people ‘think will win’) was demonstrated to the extreme – as it did in the previous Presidential election. Essentially pollsters didn’t interview enough people who were ‘intending’ to vote for Trump; and if they did interview Trump supporters many were too frightened to say they would vote for Trump. The best way to measure ‘voting intention’ accurately is with ‘face-to-face’ interviews conducted with a representative sample of people using a ‘secret ballot’. Of course things can change in politics, as voters did in Queensland, when Pauline Hansen’s vote almost halved when she publicly called to ‘open’ Queensland borders. However in the US the polls simply got it wrong – with Trump concentrating on the economy – and blue collar jobs – while Biden and the media were focused on COVID.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Have ‘the guts to open’, like NSW

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Original article by Finbar O’Mallon, Jenny Wiggins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 5-Nov-20

The New South Wales government will reopen the state’s borders to travellers from Victoria on 23 November. Premier Gladys Berejiklian says it is in the national interest for other states to reopen their borders with NSW, and she has urged them to do so. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says the NSW government’s decision is a sign of confidence in his state’s health system. However, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says her state will monitor the situation in Victoria during the next month before considering any move to ease border restrictions.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET

Crown under pressure to delay casino opening

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Original article by Damon Kitney, Lachlan Moffet Gray
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 5-Nov-20

Crown Resorts is scheduled to open its Barangaroo casino in Sydney on 14 December, although New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian has raised the possibility that the opening could be delayed. The Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority’s inquiry has been told that Crown is not suitable to hold the licence for the gaming venue. Adam Bell, the counsel assisting the inquiry, also said that the shareholding of businessman James Packer has had a "deleterious impact" on Crown’s corporate governance. Crown shares fell 1.75 per cent to $8.42 on 4 November.

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CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, NEW SOUTH WALES. INDEPENDENT LIQUOR AND GAMING AUTHORITY, NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET

Gina Rinehart’s wealth soars as Hancock Prospecting reports $4b profit

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Original article by Nick Toscano
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 5-Nov-20

Hancock Prospecting has reported a 2019-20 after-tax profit of $4bn, compared with $2.6bn previously. The company benefited from the strong price of iron ore during the financial year. Hancock’s iron ore assets include the Roy Hill mine and a 50 per cent stake in the Hope Downs joint venture. Hancock also controls Atlas Iron, which operates the Mt Webber iron ore mine in the Pilbara. Meanwhile, Hancock has paid a maiden dividend of $475m and repaid a $US7.2bn ($10.1bn) debt some four months ahead of schedule.

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HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, ATLAS IRON LIMITED

Construction down by $5b over two years

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Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 39 : 5-Nov-20

The Australian Construction Industry Forum has forecast that construction activity will fall by 3.2 per cent in 2020-21 due to the impact of COVID-19. Construction work in the accommodation sector is tipped to fall by 34 per cent, while a 23 per cent decline in entertainment and recreation projects is expected. However, the ACIF expects an increase in construction work in the industrial property, health and aged-care sectors. Activity in the residential construction sector is expected to remain subdued for several years, but growth in home renovations is forecast.

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AUSTRALIAN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY FORUM

Viewers take slow track for Melbourne Cup

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Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 22 : 5-Nov-20

The Ten Network’s coverage of the 2020 Melbourne Cup attracted about 1.41 million viewers across the five major metropolitan markets, compared with 1.44 million in 2019. OzTAM’s figures also show that the national audience for the Melbourne Cup was 1.86 million viewers, down from 1.92 million in 2019. Ten’s coverage of the iconic horse race also attracted 144,000 viewers on its 10 Play broadcast video-on-demand service.

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TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, OZTAM PTY LTD, THE LEXUS MELBOURNE CUP