Holiday intention levels showing some weakening

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 26-Mar-19

Research from Roy Morgan carried out in the three months to December 2018 shows that 13.94 million Australians aged 14+ (67.6%) intend to take a holiday in the next 12 months, a drop of 250,000 (or 1.8%) from the same time in 2017. The ‘Roy Morgan Leading Indicator Holiday Travel Intention, December 2018’ report also shows that 52.0% of Australians intend that their next holiday will be domestic (down from 54.3%), while 10.8% intend to take an overseas holiday (down from 11.1%). It is worth noting that 1.01 million holiday intenders have yet to decide their likely holiday destination for the next 12 months. This report is based on data collected from Roy Morgan’s Single Source survey, which involves in-depth interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 Australians consumers per annum in their homes.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Declining importance of private health insurance to fund members

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 26-Mar-19

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey, which was carried out in the year to December 2018, shows that 55.4% of Australians aged 14+ with private health insurance agree that ‘it is essential to have private health insurance’. This continues a declining trend seen each year since December 2014, when it was 65.0%. The survey also shows that 67.5% of people with private health insurance agree that ‘it gives me peace of mind’, down from 73.6% in 2014; meanwhile, some 55.4% agree that ‘it’s essential to have’, down from 65.0% in 2014. The survey is based on in-depth personal interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 Australians per annum in their own homes, including over 8,000 interviews with members of private health insurance funds.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Over 5 million Australians consider buying groceries online

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 26-Mar-19

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that 31% of Australians aged 14+ (more than five million people) would consider buying groceries online in the next year, an increase of more than 800,000 in the last 12 months. The survey, which was carried out in the year to December 2018, also shows that 34% of both Coles and Woolworths shoppers would consider buying groceries online in the next year, compared with 26% of Aldi customers and 23% of IGA customers. Meanwhile, just 5% of Woolworths customers and 4% of Coles customers currently buy groceries online in an average month.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKETS, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, IGA

Tax cuts offset low wages: Libs

Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 25-Mar-19

The federal government’s April 2019 Budget is expected to include an election sweetener in the form of billions of dollars worth of income tax cuts, in addition to those that were legislated in 2018. Liberal senator Arthur Sinodinos says tax cuts that target low and middle-income earners will provide some relief from the rising cost of living until wages begin growing. However, shadow treasurer Chris Bowen argues that tax cuts are not a substitute for wages growth, adding that Labor’s policy will provide greater tax relief for people on low and middle incomes.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Mediscare campaign aimed at marginals

Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 2 : 25-Mar-19

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has advised that Labor will resume indexation of some Medicare benefits from July if it wins the federal election. Labor imposed the Medicare freeze in 2013, and it has been extended twice by the Coalition government. Shorten has indicated that the health system will be Labor’s top priority at the upcoming poll. He claims that the Liberals’ spending cuts mean that Australians are now paying more than ever to see a GP or a specialist. The Medicare freeze was slated to remain in place until July 2020.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES. MEDICARE AUSTRALIA

Gladys triumph: PM eyes May 11

Original article by Simon Benson, Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 25-Mar-19

The New South Wales government is set to retain office with a majority of up to two seats after gaining 42.7 per cent of the primary vote in the state election on 23 March. Labor’s primary vote was 33 per cent, while the Shooters, Fishers & Farmers Party won two seats from the National Party in regional and rural areas. Meanwhile, the federal government is expected to hold an election on 11 May, with a five-week election campaign likely to be announced days after the Budget on 2 April. Sources have indicated that the government will seek to shore up support in regional and rural areas by including a regional ­economic development package in the Budget.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, SHOOTERS, FISHERS AND FARMERS PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, NATIONAL IRRIGATORS COUNCIL LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Lachlan could reunite Murdoch family empire

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 30 : 25-Mar-19

Lachlan Murdoch has taken over as CEO of Fox Corporation, while he remains co-chairman of News Corporation. There is speculation that he may seek to re-combine the two Murdoch family businesses, but any action on this front would be unlikely to occur for at least another two years. Like his father Rupert, Lachlan Murdoch is regarded as being passionate about publishing; he began his involvement with News Corp at the age of 16 when he cleaned printing presses in Queensland.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FOX CORPORATION, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED

PM, Nats work on coal peace plan

Original article by Phillip Coorey, Aaron Patrick
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 7 : 25-Mar-19

The National Party performed poorly in the New South Wales election on 23 March. This appears likely to re-ignite tensions within the Coalition at the federal level over issues such as coal-fired power stations, with former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce calling for the federal government to support coal-fired power stations. Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Nationals leader Michael McCormack are understood to be working on a "peace deal" over the issue.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

NAB, ANZ most at risk as Millennials switch

Original article by Patrick Durkin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 25-Mar-19

Millennial Future has found that National Australia Bank and ANZ customers are most likely to change banks in the wake of the banking royal commission. NAB came in for a lot of criticism during the royal commission, while a February survey by Roy Morgan found that NAB was the least trusted bank brand in Australia. Millennial Future’s findings were based on a survey of over 1,200 bank customers between the ages of 19 and 36, although it found that bank and finance brands were still considered more trustworthy than media and insurance brands.

CORPORATES
MILLENNIAL FUTURE, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, ROY MORGAN LIMITED, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

Rinehart, Forrest and big miners sweet on Ecuador

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 25-Mar-19

Sunstone Metals CEO Malcolm Norris expects there to be a lot of gold and copper discoveries in Ecuador in the next 10 years. Norris, secured the Cascabel tenement in Ecuador some years ago when he was in charge of SolGold, which owns 85 per cent of Cascabel. SolGold recently launched a hostile takeover bid for Cornerstone Capital, which has a 15 per cent stake in Cascabel. Cornerstone has spurned the takeover bid and criticised SolGold for what it stated were ongoing delays with releasing information about Cascabel.

CORPORATES
SUNSTONE METALS LIMITED – ASX STM, SOLGOLD PLC, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, CORNERSTONE CAPITAL RESOURCES INCORPORATED, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD