Author: roymorgansocial

Unemployment drops to 8.7% in June, lowest since 2016

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 9-Jul-18

A Roy Morgan survey shows that 12,245,000 Australians were employed in June 2018, down 85,000 over the last year. The fall was driven by a drop in full-time employment, which was down 300,000 to 7,800,000; part-time employment increased by 215,000 to 4,445,000. The figures also show that 1,171,000 Australians were unemployed (8.7% of the workforce) in June, a decrease of 29,000 (down 0.2%) on a year ago. In addition, 1,302,000 Australians (9.7% of the workforce) are now under-employed, working part-time and looking for more work, a fall of 143,000 in a year (down 1%). Roy Morgan’s real unemployment figure of 8.7% for June remains substantially higher than the current ABS estimate for May of 5.4%. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says that over 2.4 million Australians looking for work or looking for more work in June explains why wage growth remains at record lows. Improving wage growth and the performance of the Australian economy is as simple as designing policies that engage these under-utilised workers and encourage employers to offer more jobs, and more hours, to Australians who want more work.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

June Business Confidence down to 114.4

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 9-Jul-18

In Australia, Business Confidence fell 2.7pts (-2.3%) to 114.4 in June 2018, according to the latest Roy Morgan Business Single Source survey. However, it remains 2.6pts higher than a year ago and continues its best start to a year since 2014. Business Confidence traditionally falls in the months immediately following the Federal Budget and this year is no exception. Business Confidence has now decreased in six out of the last eight years in the two months following the Federal Budget (May and June). Despite the overall fall in confidence, businesses are still largely confident about the prospects for the Australian economy; 54.2% (down 0.2ppts) expect "good times" for the economy over the next 12 months and 50.3% (down 1.2ppts) expect "good times" for the economy over the next five years. Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says the decision by Opposition Leader Bill Shorten to support the Federal Government’s company tax cuts for any business turning over up to $50 million came too late to impact Business Confidence in June but will support Business Confidence in July and following months.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

England’s Cup dream ratings hit

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Original article by Patrick Durkin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 7 : 9-Jul-18

Data from SBS shows that England’s 2-0 win against Sweden in the FIFA World Cup quarter-final attracted an average audience of 626,000 on 8 July, including 527,800 metropolitan viewers. England will meet Croatia in the second semi-final on 12 July, following the France-Belgium semi-final. Croatia advanced to the semi-finals after beating Russia 4-3 on penalties, after the teams were tied 2-2 at full-time. The World Cup final is tipped to attract a global television audience of more than one billion.

CORPORATES
SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS), FEDERATION INTERNATIONALE DE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, TABCORP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TAH, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, RANDSTAD RECRUITMENT PTY LTD

Directors hit in Hayne fallout

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Original article by Alice Uribe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 2 : 9-Jul-18

Providers of directors’ and officers’ insurance have increased their premiums by an average of 70 per cent over the past six months due to costs incurred as a result of class actions. Eden Fletcher of Aon Risk Solutions notes that providers have moved to prevent further losses on class action policies they offer by inserting exclusions that would see them refuse to cover companies hit by class actions resulting from the banking royal commission. There are potentially up 20 class actions pending as a result of the royal commission, with AMP alone facing five lawsuits over its fee-for-no-service scandal.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AON RISK SERVICES AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, CHUBB CORPORATION, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN LAW REFORM COMMISSION, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, BENDIGO AND ADELAIDE BANK LIMITED – ASX BEN, RABOBANK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, QBE INSURANCE GROUP LIMITED – ASX QBE, AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF COMPANY DIRECTORS, AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL GROUP INCORPORATED, XL CATLIN

ABC, SBS distort market: Fairfax

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Original article by Dana McCauley
The Australian – Page: 24 : 9-Jul-18

Fairfax Media has used its submission to the competitive neutrality inquiry to criticise the ABC for aggressively promoting and expanding its online digital news service at the expense of commercial rivals. Fairfax has also warned that the sustainability of commercial news journalism is being threatened by the ABC’s growing push to secure content supply deals with third parties. Free TV Australia has noted that the ABC and SBS have an advantage over commercial networks as they are not subject to local content quotas.

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS), FREE TV AUSTRALIA LIMITED, COMMERCIAL RADIO AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED

ALDI now most trusted brand in Australia

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 9-Jul-18

The latest Roy Morgan Net Trust Score survey shows that ALDI is now the most trusted brand in Australia, with improvements in its Net Trust Score lifting the supermarket retailer from third to first. ALDI has come in just ahead of insurer NRMA with Bendigo Bank, Qantas and Bunnings also performing well in the latest survey. Qantas has fallen from its number-one spot as Australia’s most trusted brand to fourth position. ALDI’s main supermarket rivals Woolworths and Coles are rated highly when considering trust but fell behind ALDI on Net Trust Score due to their much higher levels of distrust. According to Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine, the importance of trust to a brand’s sustainable future is increasingly recognised as a key metric.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, NRMA INSURANCE LIMITED, BENDIGO BANK, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED

Fortescue on Belt and Road to riches

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 17 & 18 : 9-Jul-18

Fortescue Metals Group’s CEO Elizabeth Gaines has urged Australian firms to make the most of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Countries that come under the BRI have a combined population of more than four billion. Gaines notes that steel is expected to underpin the infrastructure needed for the BRI, from which Fortescue could be expected to benefit as a major supplier of iron ore to China. Fortescue has been selling iron ore to China for 10 years, and Gaines notes that it supplies 17 per cent of China’s seaborne iron ore.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG

Satisfaction up for discount department stores

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 9-Jul-18

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey shows that 87.3% of customers of Australian discount department stores were satisfied in the year to May 2018, an increase of 0.6% over the previous 12 months. Kmart and Target had the highest customer satisfaction rating (both on 88.2%). Kmart improved by 0.7% over the last 12 months and Target was up by 0.6%. They were followed by Costco (87.0%), Big W (86.6%), Best & Less (86.0%), Target Country (84.8%) and Harris Scarfe (83.3%). The only stores to decline in satisfaction over the last 12 months were Harris Scarfe (down 5.2% points) and Costco (down 2.1% points). Roy Morgan’s "Discount Department Store Satisfaction Report" is based on in-depth interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 Australians per annum in their own homes.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED, TARGET AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, COSTCO WHOLESALE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES, BEST AND LESS PTY LTD, TARGET COUNTRY, HARRIS SCARFE HOLDINGS LIMITED

Australians worried about online privacy but slow to act

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 9-Jul-18

A Roy Morgan study into online privacy has found that around 90% of Australians aged +14 say it is unacceptable for companies to collect personal financial data (15% say it is "somewhat unacceptable" and 77% say it is "very unacceptable"), to scrape the contents of messages or emails (20% somewhat and 69% very unacceptable), or to collect health and medical data (15% somewhat and 74% very unacceptable) for the purpose of tailoring ads and offers to consumers. Less than 5% deem these practices to be acceptable (either very or somewhat acceptable). However, despite these concerns only around 15% of Australians claim to "always" or "often" read terms and conditions when signing up for online services, and over 54% rarely or never read them. The findings are based on interviews with a representative sample of 967 Australians drawn from Roy Morgan’s Single Source panel in June 2018.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Freehills leads on promoting women partners

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Original article by Michael Pelly, Edmund Tadros
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 6-Jul-18

Law firms taking part in the annual "Australian Financial Review" Law Partnership Survey added 290 partners in the first six months of 2018, of which 126 were women. A total of 43 firms appointed new partners, with HWL Ebsworth Lawyers adding the most. Herbert Smith Freehills promoted eight women to the role of partner, but it did not promote any men. Richard Spurio of Allens said its target for women to comprise at least 35 per cent of its partners was achieved in 2017, five years ahead of schedule.

CORPORATES
HWL EBSWORTH PTY LTD, HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS PTY LTD, ALLENS, MORAY AND AGNEW, MADDOCKS, MACPHERSON AND KELLEY LAWYERS PTY LTD, ASHURST AUSTRALIA, COLIN BIGGERS AND PAISLEY