Author: roymorgansocial

BBQ ban: social life not ok

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Original article by Greg Brown, Simon Benson, Geoff Chambers
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 25-Mar-20

The federal government has announced further restrictions as part of the coronavirus lockdown. A range of non-essential service providers will be forced to close, including beauticians, nail salons and tattoo parlours, although hairdressers and barber shops will be permitted to remain open for now. Restrictions have also been placed on the number of people who can attend weddings and funerals, while cultural institutions such as libraries and museums will be closed. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has also urged people to stay at home if possible, and he has cautioned against attending large gatherings such as barbecues and birthday parties.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Super fund satisfaction at risk as markets tumble

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 25-Mar-20

New data in Roy Morgan’s Superannuation Satisfaction Report shows that CARE Super has the highest customer satisfaction rating, at 74.5%. Self-managed funds scored the highest average satisfaction when compared to other sectors. The Superannuation Satisfaction Report, with data up to February 2020, shows CARE Super on 74.5%, an increase of 9.2% on 12 months ago. It placed ahead of Tasplan on 72.8% (+6.9%), Unisuper on 72.7% (+1.5%) and Cbus on 71.0% (+5.0%). Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says that given recent heavy losses in equities markets due to the Coronavirus pandemic, these levels of customer satisfaction may be the highest we see for some time. The report’s findings are from Roy Morgan Single Source, Australia’s most trusted consumer survey, compiled by in-depth interviews with over 50,000 Australians each year.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, CARE SUPER PTY LTD, TASPLAN LIMITED, CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING UNIONS’ SUPERANNUATION FUND

Looking beyond the panic-buying, Australia’s big supermarket story is Aldi’s growing market share

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 25-Mar-20

Roy Morgan’s Fresh Food and Grocery Report shows that across 2019, Woolworths Group and Coles Group both declined in market share, while Aldi and other smaller supermarket chains increased. Aldi not only increased its market share of all supermarket spending, it also recorded strong growth in customer penetration. The report shows that Woolworths Group had a market share of 32.9% ($34 billion) of the total grocery market, a decrease of 0.7% compared with a year earlier. However, it was still ahead of Coles Group on 26.6% (down 1.4% to $27.4 billion), Aldi on 12.4% (up 0.6% to $12.8 billion), Fresh Food Stores on 11.8% (up 0.5% to $12.2 billion), Other Supermarkets on 9.1% (up 1.3% to $9.4 billion) and IGA on 7.3% (down 0.1% to $7.5 billion). Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says that although the current Coronavirus shopping frenzy is the news of the day, Aldi’s continued growth is a story that has been building for many years. The report’s findings are from Roy Morgan Single Source, compiled by in-depth interviews with over 50,000 Australians each year.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, IGA

Banks race to roll out SME loans

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 15 & 18 : 23-Mar-20

The federal government will underwrite 50 per cent of new loans made by eligible lenders to small and medium enterprises as part of its response to the coronavirus crisis. Westpac’s acting CEO Peter King says the SME Guarantee Scheme will provide "significant support" to SMEs, while he supports moves to allow people in financial hardship to access their superannuation. The rollout of the scheme in New South Wales and Victoria has been complicated by moves to lockdown non-essential services in coming days, as banks work to keep as many branches open as possible in those states.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

ANZ Roy Morgan Financial Wellbeing Indicator – Quarterly Update March 2020

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 23-Mar-20

The ANZ-Roy Morgan Financial Wellbeing Indicator shows that the financial wellbeing of Australians improved by 1% year on year, from 59.6 (as a score out of 100) in December 2018 to 60.2 in December 2019. Financial wellbeing improved in the 12 months to December 2019 across most states and territories. However, financial wellbeing declined slightly in Queensland and the NT, and remained constant in NSW. The lack of growth in overall financial wellbeing in NSW can be attributed to a 3.1% fall in ‘resilience for the future’ during 2019. The improvement in national financial wellbeing was despite no change in financial wellbeing in the December 2019 quarter, and was due primarily to an improvement in ‘meeting everyday commitments’, which increased by 3.2% during 2019. ‘Resilience for the future’ – the ability to cope with financial setbacks – is strongly influenced by active saving habits. After steady growth in recent years, resilience declined nationally by 1.9%, from 53.7 in December 2018 to 52.7 in December 2019. This was due primarily to a decline in the number of month’s income in savings that Australians have on hand, weakened by slower deposit growth and subdued improvements in household incomes over the period.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Businessmen Dick Smith, Mike Cannon-Brookes and Andrew Forrest score highest for Net Trust

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 23-Mar-20

A special Roy Morgan survey on ‘Trust’ and ‘Distrust’ of business leaders shows Australian entrepreneurs Dick Smith, Mike Cannon-Brookes and Andrew Forrest have the highest ‘Net Trust Scores’ – meaning the ‘Trust’ felt towards the three far outweighs the ‘Distrust’ – according to a special Roy Morgan Snap SMS Survey of 974 Australians aged 14+ conducted this week. Behind the top three is Qantas CEO Alan Joyce. Also scoring highly for ‘Trust’ are Medical Leaders/Professionals and the Australian Medical Association, which is currently at the forefront of dealing with the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. At the other end of the scale are business leaders whose ‘Distrust’ outweighs their ‘Trust’ among Australians. Media proprietor Rupert Murdoch scores the highest ‘Distrust’ of any businessman, ahead of ex-politician and mining entrepreneur Clive Palmer and fellow miner Gina Rinehart. All three fill the rankings for the highest ‘Net Distrust’ and are followed by retailer Gerry Harvey of Harvey Norman. Also scoring high levels of ‘Net Distrust’ are the generic ‘Banks/Bank CEOs’ and ‘Mining companies’. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says Australians often look towards high-profile business people to provide leadership in times of crisis.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Jobless rate could hit 13.8pc despite priming of the pump

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 23-Mar-20

The federal government and the Reserve Bank have now announced a combined $189bn worth of coronavirus stimulus measures. This includes cash payments for small businesses and non-profit organisations. However, many companies that operate in sectors that employ a lot of people will not be eligible for financial relief. The construction, retail, hospitality, recreation and education are major employers; it is estimated that the unemployment rate would rise from 5.1 per cent to 13.8 per cent if they shed just 25 per cent of their workforce, or about 1.2 million people.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Insolvency law change to head off avalanche

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 23-Mar-20

The federal government will make temporary changes to laws governing insolvent trading in response to the pandemic. Amongst other things, directors will be exempt from personal liability if a company is found to be trading while insolvent, while the threshold at which creditors can initiate bankruptcy proceedings against a company will be increased from $5,000 to $20,000. These measures will remain in place for at least six months.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

A nation in shutdown

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Original article by Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 23-Mar-20

The federal government has announced details of a ‘stage one’ coronavirus lockdown following a meeting of the national cabinet. Businesses that provide non-essential services will be forced to close from midday on 23 March, including pubs, clubs, cinemas and casinos. Churches and indoor sports facilities are also among the venues that must close indefinitely. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has warned that more onerous stage two restrictions will be imposed if people fail to comply with the initial restrictions. Schools in most states will remain open for the remainder of the first term.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Third bailout being prepared as $66b injected to help first blows

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 23-Mar-20

The second stage of the federal government’s stimulus package includes the introduction of a welfare wage for workers who lose their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic. They will be eligible for a fortnightly payment of up to $1,100, while the existing Newstart allowance will be increased and renamed the Jobseeker Payment. Workers who are stood down will also be able to withdraw up to $20,000 from their superannuation fund. Meanwhile, businesses with annual turnover of up to $50m will be eligible for a cash payment of up to $100,000. The government and the nation’s banks will also jointly provide a $40bn loan facility for small and medium enterprises.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET