Santos slumps after rating downgrade

Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 10-Dec-14

Investors have responded bearishly to a move by Standard & Poor’s to reduce the credit rating of Australian-listed Santos from "BBB+" to "BBB". Santos shares closed $A0.60 lower at $A7.70 on 9 December 2014, after reaching an intra-day low of $A7.46. The oil and gas producer has indicated that the ratings downgrade will have no impact on its finances, and notes that it has a healthy balance sheet

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, STANDARD AND POOR’S (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Ambulance waiting times getting longer

Original article by Julia Medew, Craig Butt
The Age – Page: 2 : 10-Dec-14

A court bid under Freedom of Information laws has resulted in the paramedics’ union gaining access to statistics kept by Ambulance Victoria. The data show that ambulance response times have deteriorated, with 86,739 patients in a serious condition having to wait more than a quarter of an hour in 2013. This was equivalent to some 28% of all such cases, and an increase from the 19% recorded in the 2010 study by the Victorian Auditor-General. The newly-elected State Government has vowed to lift spending on the ambulance service by $A100m

CORPORATES
AMBULANCE VICTORIA FIRST AID, AMBULANCE EMPLOYEES AUSTRALIA, VICTORIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, VICTORIA. AUDITOR-GENERAL’S OFFICE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Nine chief’s pay soars to $19.6 million

Original article by James Thomson, Edmund Tadros
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 10-Dec-14

The latest executive salary survey by "The Australian Financial Review" shows that Nine Entertainment Company CEO David Gyngell was Australia’s highest-paid corporate executive in 2014. His total remuneration of $A19.6m included a $A2.5m cash bonus associated with the group’s IPO. Arowana International CEO Kevin Chin was paid $A13.3m in total, followed by News Corporation CEO Robert Thomson with total remuneration of $A13.2m

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AROWANA INTERNATIONAL LIMITED – ASX AWN, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, GUERDON ASSOCIATES PTY LTD, OAKTREE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC, APOLLO GLOBAL MANAGEMENT LLC

Cyber squatters nab South32, poke their tongue at BHP

Original article by Paul Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 10-Dec-14

BHP Billiton has ruled out buying the South32.com domain name, which is owned by a company based in Malibu. It is believed to have demanded $A10m to surrender the name. BHP recently revealed South32 as the name of the spin-off that will hold its non-core assets, and says it was not willing to pay the price being sought by the domain name’s owner. Experts say BHP should have ensured that it owned the .com domain as well as related domain names

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, .AU DOMAIN ADMINISTRATION LIMITED, FABULOUS DOMAINS, DARK BLUE SEA LIMITED, KARI BIAN FILM COMPANY, SOUTH32 LIMITED, NTEGRITY PTY LTD

Christmas pain as Jetstar faces further strikes

Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 2 : 16-Dec-19

The Transport Workers’ Union’s national secretary Michael Kaine says passengers of budget airline Jetstar can expect further industrial action in the lead-up to Christmas. Jetstar pilots walked off the job on the weekend of 14-15 December, resulting in nearly 100 flights being cancelled. Jetstar is offering an annual pay rise of three per cent, but CEO Gareth Evans says the wage claim equates to an increase of 15 per cent. Jetstar’s ground crew and baggage handlers will impose work stoppages on 19 December.

CORPORATES
JETSTAR AIRLINES PTY LTD, TRANSPORT WORKERS’ UNION, AUSTRALIAN FEDERATION OF AIR PILOTS

London calling: Boris talks trade

Original article by Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 16-Dec-19

The UK could potentially finalise a free-trade agreement with Australia within a year, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson signalled that it will be a priority for his newly re-elected government in the post-Brexit environment. Business Council of Australia CEO Jennifer Westacott says the UK election result will provide businesses with greater certainty, while a free-trade deal will benefit all Australians. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Scott Morrison says there are similarities between Johnson’s emphatic win and the Coalition’s election victory in May, as well as the election of US President Donald Trump in 2016.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, GREAT BRITAIN. OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LABOUR PARTY (GREAT BRITAIN)

Foreword – ANZ Roy Morgan Financial Wellbeing Indicator

Original article by
Bluenotes – Page: Online : 16-Dec-19

The ANZ Roy Morgan Financial Wellbeing Indicator is a statistically robust snapshot of the personal financial wellbeing of Australians, reported as a 12-month rolling average every quarter. The indicator is derived from data gathered through the weekly Roy Morgan Single Source survey, which canvasses approximately 50,000 Australians annually. ANZ partnered with Roy Morgan Research to develop the indicator based on previous research conducted by ANZ on personal financial wellbeing in 2017. The result is an ongoing time-series measure of how Australians are faring financially.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Hazy outlook for Prime as moguls hedge their bets

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 16-Dec-19

Prime Media Group shareholders will vote on a proposed takeover by Seven West Media on 19 December. Prime’s major shareholders include Australian Community Media’s Antony Catalano and WIN Corporation owner Bruce Gordon, whose combined stake would be sufficient to block the deal. They have both expressed interest in buying Prime, but ACM would have to sell some of its regional newspapers, while any bid by Gordon would be dependent on further changes to media ownership rules. Communications Minister Paul Fletcher has indicated that this is unlikely in the near-term.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, PRIME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX PRT, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY MEDIA, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

News Corp bolsters its social media firepower

Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 15 : 16-Dec-19

News Corp Australia has secured an exclusive deal to use the social display technology of US-based Polar. The technology will allow advertisers to run social media ads across the group’s news, entertainment and food websites. The technology will also be combined with the company’s own News Connect data platform. News Corp’s MD for digital solutions, Neil Robinson, says the company’s publications offer a safe environment for brands, which cannot be guaranteed on social media.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, POLAR, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, TWITTER INCORPORATED, INSTAGRAM LLC

Rio cool on Albanese solar smelter talk

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 16-Dec-19

Rio Tinto has indicated that it is considering all options to ensure the viability of its aluminium smelters in Australia and New Zealand, amid growing concern that they may be closed. However, the resources giant has downplayed suggestions that it may seek to switch the carbon-intensive smelters from coal to solar energy. Labor leader Anthony Albanese recently visited the Boyne smelter in Queensland, and said he had been told that Rio was looking at transitioning the plant to renewables.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY