Author: roymorgansocial

News Corp set to ditch printed versions of regional papers

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Original article by Max Mason, Sarah Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 13-May-20

Sources have indicated that News Corp Australia will shift to digital-only editions of some regional and community newspapers after negotiations to sell the business ended. News Corp launched a number of digital-only newspapers in 2018, with content that is produced by a local reporter being supplemented with stories from other newspapers in its portfolio. News Corp is believed to be considering this model for newspapers that will become digital-only.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Treasurer concedes coronavirus economic figures sobering as Australia faces largest deficit in history

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Original article by Brett Worthington
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 13-May-20

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg used an economic update on 12 May to advise of a blowout in the budget deficit. He revealed that the underlying cash deficit was $22.4bn at the end of March; this is nearly $10bn higher than the federal government had forecast in its mid-year Budget update in December. Frydenberg has not revealed the likely size of the deficit for 2019-20, but Chris Richardson of Deloitte Access Economics expects the next two budgets to feature the biggest deficits on record. Treasury expects GDP to fall by at least 10 per cent in the June quarter due the coronavirus pandemic, while household consumption is forecast to fall by about 16 per cent.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Apple Pay drives contactless mobile payment increase; older Australians might need a nudge

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-May-20

Data from the Roy Morgan Digital Payments Report shows a sharp increase in use of non-bank contactless mobile payment services compared to a year ago. A total of 10.8% of Australians now use non-bank contactless mobile payment services such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, up from 7.1% a year ago. Apple Pay is now used by 6.5% of Australians (up from 4.1%) and Google Pay is now used by 4.1% (up from 3.6%). Samsung Pay is unchanged at 1%. Analysis using Roy Morgan’s Helix Personas shows that Metrotechs are the most likely to use non-bank contactless mobile payment services, with 16.9% of people in this community using either Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay. These digital payment findings are from Roy Morgan Single Source, Australia’s leading consumer survey, compiled by comprehensive interviews with a sample of over 1,000 Australians each week.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, APPLE PAY, GOOGLE PAY, SAMSUNG PAY

Bushfire recovery bill could top $2 billion: PM

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 10 : 12-May-20

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says that federal government spending on helping communities to recover from the impact of the summer bushfires could end up exceeding $2 billion. He has also announced another $650 million in bushfire assistance, with Morrison and Emergency Management Minister David Littleproud saying that the regions that were hit the hardest would be prioritised under the latest funding. Upwards of 16,700 applications have been approved for special small business support grants of $10,000, as well as 1,300 applications for small business grants of $50,000.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Inflation expectations are higher for women than men of all ages

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 12-May-20

In April, Australians expected inflation of 3.6% annually over the next two years, down 0.4% on March as the impact of COVID-19 hit the Australian economy. Beneath the headline figure for April there are significant differences between key demographics, including women and men. Women expect price increases of 4.2% per year over the next two years while men expect prices to increase by 3%. This gap is evident for all age groups and most pronounced for those aged 50-64. Women aged 50-64 expect inflation of 5.2% – higher than any other age group, while men expect inflation of only 3.2%. Longer-term trends show the inflation expectations of women average being 0.8% higher than men. Another trend we see consistently is higher inflation expectations for older Australians aged 50+ compared to those under that age, which is confirmed by the latest April figures. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says the disparity between the inflation expectations of women and men is consistent, and even during the COVID-19 pandemic this trend continues.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Door not shut on extending jobless aid: PM

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Original article by Geoff Chambers, Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 2 : 12-May-20

JP Morgan expects about one million Australians to have lost their jobs in April, lifting the unemployment rate to 8.5 per cent. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has reiterated that at present the JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme is still slated to be in place for six months. He adds that it could be extended or scaled back, depending on the pace at which the economy and the labour market recover from the pandemic. Official labour market data for April will be released on 14 May.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Restructure or sell? News Corp sizes up some assets

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Original article by Max Mason, Sarah Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 12-May-20

Sources have indicated that News Corp Australia will restructure its regional and community newspapers arm if a deal to sell the business cannot be reached quickly. News Corp has held talks about selling the newspapers to Australian Community Media. It is believed that a key issue for News Corp is the value of the mastheads in terms of cross-marketing with REA Group; ACM’s joint owner Antony Catalano has a 26 per cent stake in rival property listings portal Real Estate View.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY MEDIA, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, REALESTATE.COM.AU, REALESTATEVIEW.COM.AU LIMITED, DOMAIN HOLDINGS AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX DHA

COVID to outlast support for IR reform

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Original article by Jennifer Hewett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 12-May-20

It is unlikely that the co-operation between employers, unions and the federal government during the COVID-19 crisis will last long enough to bring about much-needed change to Australia’s industrial relations system. Federal Labor has already shown indications along these lines with its push to disallow regulations that temporarily cut the negotiating period for changes to enterprise agreements. Although few would argue that the enterprise bargaining system was not already in crisis even before COVID-19, the federal government is yet to outline what it sees as necessary in terms of industrial relations reform.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Big miners pay $40 billion in tax, royalties

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 : 12-May-20

Deloitte Access Economics has concluded that Australian mining companies paid a combined $39.3bn in taxes and royalties during 2018-19, which is about $8bn higher than previously. The estimate is based on data from the Australian Taxation Office and other sources. Deloitte also estimates that the mining sector has paid about $230 billion in taxes and royalties over the last 11 financial years. The report was produced on behalf of the Minerals Council of Australia.

CORPORATES
DELOITTE ACCESS ECONOMICS PTY LTD, MINERALS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE

Two-year hangover from Covid

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Original article by Patrick Commins, Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 12-May-20

KPMG has warned that the Australian economy will not recover its losses from the coronavirus pandemic until the September 2021 quarter. The firm’s research suggests that industries such as healthcare, public administration and civil engineering will have fully rebounded by the end of 2020, but the hospitality, accommodation, and retailing and sectors will not recover until March 2022. KPMG’s forecasts are based on expectations that the easing of lockdown restrictions will not result in any major virus outbreaks.

CORPORATES
KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD