Author: roymorgansocial

ASX surge isn’t over yet, but there are dangers

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 28 : 28-May-19

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 has gained 14 per cent so far in 2019, closing at around 6,452 points on 27 May, and some analysts expect it to rise further. Citigroup now expects the benchmark index to top 6,700 points by the end of the year and reach the 6,850-point level by mid-2020. However, Chris Nicol of Morgan Stanley expects the local bourse to experience a ‘cooling off period’ following its recent peak at a 12-year high.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MACQUARIE EQUITIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Doesn’t add up: Albo’s mine craft

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Original article by Greg Brown, Alice Workman
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 28-May-19

Resources Minister Matt Canavan contends that Labor has learned nothing from how Queenslanders voted in the federal election. Canavan was attacking new Labor leader Anthony Albanese and deputy leader Richard Marles for refusing to say whether they support Adani’s proposed Carmichael coal mine in Queensland’s Galilee Basin, with the Basin having estimated thermal coal reserves of 27 billion tonnes. Albanese stated in 2018 that "there’s no market" for thermal coal, and that the Adani mine is "a climate change issue".

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, ADANI MINING PTY LTD, QUEENSLAND RESOURCES COUNCIL LIMITED

Rate cut to end house price slide

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Original article by Matthew Cranston, Ingrid Fuary-Wagner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 5 : 28-May-19

AMP Capital’s Shane Oliver now expects the housing market to bottom in the second half of 2019, rather than in 2020. He says factors such as the prospect of an official interest rate cut and the federal government’s First Home Loan Deposit Scheme will contribute to the end of the correction in house prices. Meanwhile, economist Stephen Koukoulas forecasts that house prices will bottom in the September quarter before rising in the final three months of 2019. Paul Bloxham of HSBC notes that the housing market correction has been orderly, with low levels of distressed sales and mortgage arrears.

CORPORATES
AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, HSBC AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Empire grows as Seven West Media takes control of Community Newspapers

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Original article by Hamish Hastie
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 28-May-19

Seven West Media has struck a deal to buy out News Corp Australia’s 50.1 per cent stake in their Community News joint venture in Perth. Seven West Media’s Maryna Fewster says the portfolio of 12 community newspapers and 17 digital titles will complement the company’s existing media assets in Western Australia. Community News was incorporated in 1985, and its acquisition by Seven West Media will be completed by the start of July.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, COMMUNITY NEWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

Satisfaction and NPS of big four banks improving after Finance Royal Commission

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 28-May-19

New results from Roy Morgan shows that customer satisfaction with Australia’s big four banks reached 75.9% in April 2019, up by 0.6% points since February, and their Net Promoter Score was 0.4, up from minus 1.6. Meanwhile, banks outside of the big four currently have a satisfaction rating of 83.8%. It appears that the focus of the Finance Royal Commission on the big four may have had a bigger impact on their rating, which is now down by 3.3% points from prior to the commission, compared to a decline of only 1.1% points for the banks outside of the big four. The CBA has the highest satisfaction among the big four with 78.1%, followed by Westpac (74.7%), ANZ (74.4%) and NAB (72.7%). Among the major smaller banks, Bendigo Bank has the highest rating with 90.1%, followed by ING (89.9%). The banks outside of the big four also continue to have higher NPS scores, with the latest figure for April 2019 being 24.0 compared to the big four on 0.4. The smaller banks now have higher NPS than prior to the Royal Commission, when it was 23.4. These are some of the latest findings from Roy Morgan’s ‘Customer Satisfaction report on Consumer Banking in Australia’ and the ‘Financial Institutions Advocacy Report’. These reports are based on in-depth interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 consumers per annum in their homes.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, BENDIGO BANK, ING BANK (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY

Only 5.7% of Australians say Women should take care of running their homes and leave running the country to men

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 28-May-19

Roy Morgan’s long-term analysis of important social trends reveals that social views on a variety of topics have stabilised, and in some cases reversed, in recent years. In early 2019 a clear and increasing majority of 59.2% of Australians agree that ‘The fundamental values of our society are under serious threat’. Although this is a clear decline from when this question was first asked just over 15 years ago when over two-thirds of Australians (69%) agreed, the long-term downward trend has reversed in recent years. Since 2003 there has consistently been a majority of Australians holding the view that ‘the fundamental values of our society are under serious threat’. However it was a view that was in decline until it bottomed at 55.9% in late 2013. Since then it has increased and stabilised in the range of 59-61% over the last four years. When it comes to who should run the country, a shrinking minority of only 5.7% of Australians (4.6% of women and 6.9% of men) agree that ‘Women should take care of running their homes and leave running the country to men’. As recently as mid-2012 as many as 9.1% of Australians agreed with this view, which was little changed to over 20 years ago in mid-1998 (9.5%).

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

New apartment sales crash, projects on hold

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Original article by Larry Schlesinger
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 27-May-19

Urbis has reported that just four cent of apartments in Sydney projects were sold during the March quarter. Sales were not much better in Melbourne and Brisbane, while new apartment launches in Melbourne were down by around 80 per cent. Urbis director Clinton Ostwald notes that major infrastructure projects such as Melbourne’s Westgate Tunnel and Brisbane’s Cross River Rail will help increase demand for apartments once they are completed.

CORPORATES
URBIS PTY LTD

Iron ore’s wild run threatens fragile balance

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Weekend Australian – Page: 15 & 16 : 25-May-19

The iron ore price recently rose to a five-year high of more than $US100 per tonne. While the price surge will boost the earnings of Australian iron ore producers, BHP and Rio Tinto in particular would prefer a sustained price of around $US70 per tonne. The current elevated price of the steel input provides an incentive for other mining companies to develop iron ore projects and emerge as rival exporters to Asian steel mills. Countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia and India could potentially resume iron ore shipments to China, while strong growth in China’s scrap steel market looms as another possible threat to Australian producers.

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BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, ATLAS IRON LIMITED, VALE SA

ABC gives edge to progressive voices

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Original article by Zoe Samios, Alice Workman, Jessica Cortis
The Australian – Page: 24 : 27-May-19

Analysis shows that Labor politicians were interviewed 12 times by the ABC’s flagship news and current affairs programs during the federal election campaign. A total of 10 politicians from the Liberal Party were interviewed on ‘7.30’, ‘Insiders’ and ‘AM’, while three Greens and one Centre Alliance politician were interviewed. ‘7.30’ featured three live interviews with Coalition politicians, four with Labor and one Greens. Prime Minister Scott Morrison and former Opposition leader Bill Shorten were both interviewed on ‘7:30’ twice during the election campaign.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, CENTRE ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

Scott Morrison unveils new ministry as Coalition prepares for majority government

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Original article by Henry Belot, Dan Conifer
abc.net au – Page: Online : 27-May-19

The federal government has announced a number of changes to its Cabinet team in the wake of the federal election. Sussan Ley will replace Melissa Price as Minister for the Environment, although Energy Minister Angus Taylor will assume responsibility for carbon emissions reduction policy. Linda Reynolds has been given the defence portfolio, Bridget McKenzie is the new Agriculture Minister and Ken Wyatt will take on the Indigenous Affairs portfolio. Senator Arthur Sinodinos will succeed Joe Hockey as Australia’s ambassador to the US, while former Communications Minister Mitch Fifield is set to become Australia’s ambassador to the United Nations.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER RESOURCES, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS