Author: roymorgansocial

PM dumps big business tax cuts

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 6 : 23-Aug-18

The Senate has voted against the Federal Government’s company tax cuts package, which would have progressively reduced the tax rate for businesses with turnover of more than $50m from 30 per cent to 25 per cent. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says tax cuts for larger companies will not be on the Coalition’s agenda for the next election. The government will instead look at options for bringing forward tax cuts for businesses with turnover of up to $50m that have already been legislated. An amendment to exclude the major banks from the proposed tax cuts was also rejected by the upper house.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, CENTRE ALLIANCE, ONE NATION PARTY, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

Change agent’s mission to restore trust in AMP

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Original article by James Eyers, Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 & 22 : 23-Aug-18

AMP’s incoming CEO Francesco De Ferrari will receive a base salary of $2.2m when he takes up the role in December, while his remuneration package also includes incentive payments. He faces a major challenge in turning around AMP’s fortunes in the wake of the banking royal commission’s revelations. De Ferrari is currently the head of Credit Suisse’s private bank in Singapore, and AMP chairman David Murray has praised the corporate culture at Credit Suisse. Shares in AMP closed $0.06 lower at $3.39 on 22 August, after the stock began trading ex-dividend.

CORPORATES
AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, CREDIT SUISSE AG, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BT FINANCIAL GROUP PTY LTD, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

Snap election would catch Coalition with its pants down

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Original article by Rachel Baxendale, Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian – Page: 9 : 23-Aug-18

Analyses shows that since 1983, federal political parties that have changed leaders more than halfway between an election have generally won office at the next election. There is speculation that the Coalition’s current leadership crisis could prompt an early election, but Labor has made a lot more progress in selecting candidates than the Liberal Party. Labor has completed the pre-selection process for candidates in the 20 most marginal seats that are held by the Coalition. In contrast, the Liberals have named just one candidate in the 20 most marginal Labor-held seats.

CORPORATES
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, ELECTORAL COMMISSION OF NEW SOUTH WALES

TPG soars on Vodafone talks

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Original article by Supratim Adhikari, Bridget Carter
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 23-Aug-18

TPG Telecom has advised that it is holding discussions with Vodafone regarding a "merger of equals", as it prepares to launch its own mobile network. TPG already uses Vodafone’s network for its mobile service, while Vodafone in turn uses TPG’s fixed broadband infrastructure. Graeme Ferguson of S&P Global Ratings says the potential merger may affect the Federal Government’s auction of 5G spectrum in November, as both companies were expected to submit bids. TPG shares closed 21 per cent higher at $7.65 on 22 August.

CORPORATES
TPG TELECOM LIMITED – ASX TPM, VODAFONE HUTCHISON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, S&P GLOBAL RATINGS, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS

D-day for PM as allies desert

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Original article by Simon Benson, Dennis Shanahan, Joe Kelly, Ben Packham, Greg Brown, Primrose Riordan, Rosie Lewis, Rachel Baxendale
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 23-Aug-18

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull could face another leadership challenge before Parliament rises for two weeks. Supporters of Peter Dutton have petitioned Coalition MPs to hold a partyroom meeting and another leadership ballot on 23 August. Meanwhile, Finance Minister Mathias Cormann has told Turnbull that he has lost the support of the partyroom, while Attorney-General Christian Porter has confirmed that he has sought advice from the Solicitor-General regarding Dutton’s eligibility to be in parliament. His financial interest in two childcare centres that receive government subsidies could potentially be a breach of the Constitution.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HEALTH, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Lihir gold output to hit 1 million oz: Newcrest

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 23-Aug-18

Newcrest Mining has posted a 2017-18 net profit of $US202m, which is 34 per cent lower than previously. A $US155m insurance payout arising from seismic events at the Cadia mine partially offset impairment charges associated with other assets. Newcrest has also advised that gold production at its Lihir mine is expected to be within the range of 950,000 and 1.05 million ounces in 2018-19. Rival gold miners St Barbara and Saracen Mineral Holdings have reported net profits of $227m and $75.6m respectively.

CORPORATES
NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, ST BARBARA LIMITED – ASX SBM, SARACEN MINERAL HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SAR

BHP’s copper king looks past volatility

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 23-Aug-18

BHP’s Escondida copper mine in Chile had record throughput in 2017-18, while the mine’s underlying EBIT rose by 136 per cent to $US3.3bn. Danny Malchuk, the head of BHP’s Minerals Americas division, has downplayed concerns about a sharp fall in the copper price in the last two months, arguing that BHP’s focus is on the long-term outlook. He says that while global trade tensions have contributed to the pullback in the copper price, the lack of strike action at the world’s major copper mines has also had an impact on prices.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, MINERA ESCONDIDA LIMITADA, SAMARCO MINERACAO SA

Labor win a housing game changer

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Original article by Sarah Turner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 23-Aug-18

Brett Gillespie of Ellerston Capital says financial markets are not giving much consideration to the possibility that Labor will win the next federal election. He notes that a Labor government would have a major impact on the property market, given that Labor proposes to restrict negative gearing to new homes. Gillespie adds that a Labor win would also have implications for the sharemarket and the broader economy.

CORPORATES
ELLERSTON CAPITAL PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, DOMAIN HOLDINGS AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX DHA, McGRATH LIMITED – ASX MEA, BORAL LIMITED – ASX BLD, CSR LIMITED – ASX CSR, FLETCHER BUILDING LIMITED – ASX FBU, ADELAIDE BRIGHTON LIMITED – ASX ABC, DULUXGROUP LIMITED – ASX DLX, GWA GROUP LIMITED – ASX GWA, BLUESCOPE STEEL LIMITED – ASX BSL, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, MIRVAC GROUP – ASX MGR, STOCKLAND – ASX SGP, GENWORTH MORTGAGE INSURANCE AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX GMA, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Snap Morgan Poll shows electors prefer Turnbull to Shorten but Shorten preferred to Dutton

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 23-Aug-18

A special Snap SMS Morgan Poll conducted with a cross-section of more than 1,250 Australian electors on August 22 shows that Malcolm Turnbull (52%) is seen as the Better Prime Minister compared to Opposition Leader Bill Shorten (44.5%), while a further 3.5% cannot say. However, Bill Shorten (59%) is clearly seen as the Better PM compared to Liberal Party leadership challenger Peter Dutton (36.5%), while a further 4.5% cannot say. Analysis by gender shows that 53% of men regard Turnbull as the Better PM, a lead of 10% over Shorten (43%); Turnbull has a lead of 5% as Better PM among women (51%, compared with 46% for Shorten). Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says that if the Liberal Party chose to elect Peter Dutton as the new Liberal Party Leader they would be setting Bill Shorten and the ALP on course for victory at the next Federal Election. She notes that Dutton is not significantly stronger in his home State of Queensland than any other state; just 40% of electors in Queensland see Dutton as the Better PM, while 53% say Shorten would be the Better PM.

CORPORATES
MORGAN POLL, ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

ACCC power would be a catastrophe

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Original article by Ben Potter
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 22-Aug-18

Danny Price of Frontier Economics has warned that giving the competition regulator the power to break up vertically integrated energy companies would undermine investor confidence in both the sector itself and other industries that could potentially be subject to such regulation. Price adds that consumers would be worse off, as AGL Energy, EnergyAustralia and Origin Energy have accounted for the bulk of investment in new electric power generation capacity over the last decade.

CORPORATES
FRONTIER ECONOMICS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, ENERGYAUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AUSTRALIA. ENERGY SECURITY BOARD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, BLOOMBERG NEW ENERGY FINANCE, MELBOURNE BUSINESS SCHOOL, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA