Author: roymorgansocial

Business Confidence ended 2019 at an eight-month low of 104.5

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 21-Jan-20

In Australia, Business Confidence fell 3.9pts (-3.6%) to an eight-month low of 104.5 in December 2019, according to the latest Roy Morgan Business Single Source survey. Business Confidence is now 7.7pts lower than a year ago, and 10.8pts below the long-term average of 115.3. Only 40.3% (down 4.5ppts) of business leaders expect the Australian economy will have ‘good times’ in 2020, and just 42.2% (down 4.3ppts) expect ‘good times’ for the economy over the next five years. Meanwhile, Business Confidence was at 106.3 in the December quarter, down 6.8pts on a year ago but virtually unchanged from the March quarter (106.1). The boost given to Business Confidence following the Federal Election in May has well and truly worn off. Business Confidence was up on a year ago in only two States, WA and Tasmania, which now have the highest ratings among the States. The latest Roy Morgan Business Confidence results for December are based on 979 detailed interviews with a cross-section of Australian businesses from each State and Territory.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

People’s Choice Credit Union – 95% customer satisfaction – highest satisfaction score in the general insurance category

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 21-Jan-20

People’s Choice Credit Union has won Roy Morgan’s General Insurer of the Month Award for November 2019, with a customer satisfaction rating of 95%. It is now ahead of RACT (92%), RAA (91%), Shannons (90%) and RAC (87%), and has won its second consecutive monthly award. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says that while RACT has been the dominant brand throughout 2019, People’s Choice Credit Union has been the standout performer in terms of ratings growth, increasing its rating by 9% over the last 12 months. The latest customer satisfaction ratings are taken from the Roy Morgan Single Source survey, compiled by in-depth face-to-face interviews with over 50,000 Australians each year in their homes.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, PEOPLE’S CHOICE CREDIT UNION, RACT INSURANCE PTY LTD, RAA INSURANCE LIMITED, SHANNONS, RAC INSURANCE PTY LTD

Poker machine gambling is down overall, but not in the NT; WA tops lottery participation rates

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 21-Jan-20

The latest data from Roy Morgan’s Gambling Currency Report shows that the Northern Territory has the highest proportion of poker machine players, with 23.6% of residents aged 18+ having used a machine in an average three-month period. It is followed by Queensland (14.9%), New South Wales (incl. ACT) (14.2%), Tasmania (13.5%), South Australia (12.4%), Victoria (10.6%) and Western Australia (5.0%). The Northern Territory also has the highest betting participation rate, with 15.3% of residents aged 18+ having placed a bet in an average three-month period, followed by Victoria (10.8%), New South Wales (incl. ACT) (10.0%), Western Australia (9.6%), Queensland (8.1%), South Australia (7.4%) and Tasmania (4.7%). Meanwhile, Western Australia has the highest participation rate for lotteries and scratch tickets, with 52.8% of residents aged 18+ having purchased a ticket in an average three-month period. The Gambling Currency Report’s findings have been taken from the Roy Morgan Single Source survey, compiled by in-depth face-to-face interviews with over 1,000 Australians each week in their homes.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

High prices foiling first-home buyers

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 4 : 17-Jan-20

The number of first-home buyers approved for new loans in November fell by 0.9 per cent, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, while the average loan for first-home buyers increased to a record $410,000. ANZ economist Adelaide Timbrell says fewer first-home buyers taking out bigger loans is an indication that rising house prices are making it harder for first-home buyers to get into the property market. She says the ANZ expects an interest rate cut in February, which is likely to push up house prices and reduce housing affordability.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ,{SPAC}AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Spending on large-scale renewable energy in Australia plunges

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Hannam
The Age – Page: Online : 17-Jan-20

Bloomberg New Energy Finance research indicates investments in large-scale renewable energy projects in Australia fell by 56 per cent in 2019. The decline in renewable energy investment in Australia was at odds with trends globally, and can be attributed to a lack of long-term policy certainty at the federal level. Federal Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor says reducing the cost of storage and backup will help to ensure continued growth in new renewable investment.

CORPORATES
BLOOMBERG NEW ENERGY FINANCE,{SPAC}AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY

Black Friday sales now etched firmly into Australian retailing

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Liam Walsh
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 17-Jan-20

Michael Hill International’s sales grew by 3.3 per cent to $203m in the December quarter, while same-store sales rose by four per cent to $198m. The listed jewellery retailer’s same-store sales in Australia rose 1.6 per cent to $103.5m, although overall sales fell 0.9 per cent to $105.9m. CEO Daniel Bracken notes that the group’s sales increased in November due to the ‘Black Friday’ sales. He adds that the Black Friday sales are having an impact on consumers undertake their Christmas shopping.

CORPORATES
MICHAEL HILL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED – ASX MHJ

Unions seek pay guarantees

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 17-Jan-20

Unions are proposing a new workplace condition that would see the pay of workers guaranteed if their employer has to shut down because of a bushfire or some other natural disaster. Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia CEO Peter Strong has attacked the idea as being "political and completely unworkable", although COSBOA has lent its support to a push by the ACTU to increase the federal government’s disaster recovery allowance for fire-impacted workers to the minimum wage.

CORPORATES
COUNCIL OF SMALL BUSINESS ORGANISATIONS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED,{SPAC}ACTU

Gen Z threatens $1.7b of bank card revenue

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 17-Jan-20

Macquarie Group expects a further decline in credit card lending and revenue over the medium-term, as consumers continue to embrace alternative payment methods. Credit cards and payments account for some $1.7bn of major Australian banks’ revenue, and Macquarie believes that up to 45 per cent of this could be at risk due to the growth of ‘buy now, pay later platforms’ and other payment solutions. German notes that banks are also facing growing competition from fintechs in the foreign exchange market.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

How CSL and BHP helped drive the index above 7000

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by William McInnes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 17-Jan-20

The S&P/ASX 200 has taken just over two years to rise from 6,000 points to its new record high of 7,000. The index rose above 6,000 for the first time since the global financial crisis on 7 November 2017. BHP and CSL have been the biggest contributors to the S&P/ASX’s 200 rally since this time, adding 200 and 277 points respectively to the benchmark. Shares in CSL were trading at just $144.59 in November 2017, and the stock rose above $300 for the first time on 16 January.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX,{SPAC}BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP,{SPAC}CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL

$4.5b up in flames as visitors cancel

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Fiona Carruthers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 17-Jan-20

The Australian Tourism Export Council has advised that 70 per cent of its members have received cancellations because of the bushfires, for trips ranging between $5,000 and $500,000. The decline in overseas visitors booking holidays to Australia is expected to cost the economy at least $4.5 billion by the end of 2020. Tourism Australia has withdrawn its $15 million ‘Matesong’ campaign from the UK market as a result of the bushfires, but ATEC MD Peter Shelley says the federal government needs to fund a new global campaign to promote Australia once the fires subside.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TOURISM EXPORT COUNCIL LIMITED,{SPAC}TOURISM AUSTRALIA PTY LTD