Feud for thought: Grant Denyer takes home gold at the Logies

Original article by Michael Idato
The Age – Page: Online : 2-Jul-18

Family Feud host Grant Denyer has won the 2018 Gold Logie, despite the game show having been axed. Ray Meagher and Jessica Marais won the awards for the most popular actor and actress at the 60th annual TV Week Logie Awards, while "Wentworth" won the award for the most popular drama program. Meanwhile, subscription video-on-demand provider Stan won its first Logie, with "Romper Stomper" taking out the award for the most outstanding miniseries or telemovie. The Nine Network’s "60 Minutes" was inducted into the Logie Hall of Fame.

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TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS)

Shorten, Swan sharpen class warfare attacks

Original article by Tom McIlroy, Michael Bailey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 2-Jul-18

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has committed to reversing weekend penalty rate cuts within 100 days of taking office if Labor wins the next election. Penalty rate cuts in sectors such as retailing took effect on 1 July. However, Council of Small Business Organisations CEO Peter Strong argues that many large retailers already have lower penalty rates under enterprise agreements that were negotiated by unions. Meanwhile, Labor’s national president Wayne Swan has defended Shorten’s stance on reversing company tax cuts, but concedes that he should not have announced the policy before consulting with the shadow cabinet.

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AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, COUNCIL OF SMALL BUSINESS ORGANISATIONS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE AUSTRALIAN SMALL BUSINESS AND FAMILY ENTERPRISE OMBUDSMAN, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKETS, McDONALD’S AUSTRALIA LIMITED

No RBA rate hikes for a year

Original article by Vesna Poljak, Sarah Turner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 20 : 2-Jul-18

A quarterly survey of economists shows that the general consensus is that the Reserve Bank of Australia will leave interest rates on hold at 1.5 per cent until June 2019. The cash rate is now expected to reach two per cent by the end of 2019. However, former ANZ Bank chief economist Warren Hogan expects one rate increase by mid-2019, arguing that the RBA needs to begin the process of normalising monetary policy. Matthew Peter of QIC also expects one rate rise in the next 12 months.

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RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, QIC LIMITED, UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY, BANK FOR INTERNATIONAL SETTLEMENTS, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, IFM INVESTORS PTY LTD, MARKET ECONOMICS PTY LTD, LAMINAR CAPITAL, CAPITAL ECONOMICS LIMITED, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK

Sydney prices end 2017-18 down 5pc

Original article by Larry Schlesinger
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 2-Jul-18

Figures to be released by Corelogic on 2 July are expected to show that Sydney house prices fell by around five per cent in the 2017-18 financial year. Melbourne house prices are tipped to have remained almost flat, while dwelling values in the five main capital city markets are expected to have declined by nearly two per cent. Preliminary figures indicate that the national auction clearance rate for the weekend of 30 June-1 July was 56.7 per cent, compared with a clearance rate of 67.3 per cent for the corresponding period in 2017.

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CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BELLE PROPERTY PTY LTD

Strategists offer their wisdom on ASX outlook for 2018-19

Original article by Sarah Turner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 2-Jul-18

The S&P/ASX 200 gained 8.6 per cent during 2017-18, ending the financial year at 6,194 points. The energy sector rose 37 per cent and the material sector added 24 per cent. Equities strategists are generally upbeat about the outlook for commodity prices and the resources sector in 2018-19, although some are bearish about bank stocks. Meanwhile, Chris Nicol of Morgan Stanley expects the S&P/ASX 200 to be trading at 5,950 points at the end of 2018-19, while Tony Brennan of Citigroup has a target of 6,650 points.

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STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, GOLDMAN SACHS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, TREASURY WINE ESTATES LIMITED – ASX TWE, ARISTOCRAT LEISURE LIMITED – ASX ALL, THE A2 MILK COMPANY LIMITED – ASX A2M, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Ten looks local to weather cricket loss

Original article by Dana McCauley
The Australian – Page: 24 : 2-Jul-18

UBS forecasts that Australia’s free-to-air TV advertising market will record growth of 1.5 per cent in 2018-19. The firm says elections at federal and state level will boost the ad revenue of the Seven and Nine networks. Meanwhile, UBS figures show that the Ten Network’s share of ad revenue fell sharply during the first half of 2018. Ten intends to ramp up its local content after losing the Big Bash League broadcasting rights, with a number of new shows set to debut in the second half.

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UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, CBS CORPORATION, BIG BASH LEAGUE, CRICKET AUSTRALIA

Superannuation of female intending retirees still lags

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 2-Jul-18

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey, which was carried out in the year to April 2018, shows that an estimated 392,000 Australians intend to retire in the next 12 months. However, the average superannuation held by women who intend to retire in the next 12 months is $177,000 or equal to only 57.3% of the male average ($309,000). Meanwhile, the average superannuation held by female intending retirees in 2008 was $79,000 or only 55.2% of the male average of $143,000. The survey is based on in-depth personal interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 Australians per annum in their own home, including over 2,200 with people who intend to retire in the next 12 months.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Foodland leads, Woolworths the biggest improver

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 2-Jul-18

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey shows that customer satisfaction with Foodland in the six months to May was 95.5%. It was again the top performer among the big five supermarkets, despite showing a decline of 2.3% points over the last 12 months. Aldi had a customer satisfaction rating of 91.8%, followed by Woolworths (90.0%), Coles (88.5%) and IGA (85.4%). These are the latest results from Roy Morgan’s "Retail Satisfaction Report-Supermarkets", which is based on in-depth personal interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 Australians per annum in their own home, including over 11,000 main supermarket shoppers.

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

New car purchasing intentions moderating

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 2-Jul-18

A Roy Morgan Single Source Survey, which was carried out in the three months to April 2018, shows that 2.268 million Australians aged 14+ intend to purchase a new car in the next four years. This is a decline of 66,000 from March, but it still remains above the long-term average of 2.155 million. The number of Australian who intend to purchase a new car in the next 12 months has dropped from 612,000 in March to 578,000. These are the latest results from Roy Morgan’s "Automotive Currency Report" which is based on in-depth personal interviews conducted face-to-face with over 50,000 Australians per annum in their own home, with over 1,300 Australians intending to buy a car in the next four years.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Rule Britannia as UK design wins $35b frigate deal

Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 29-Jun-18

The federal government has selected UK-based BAE Systems to build Australia’s new frigates. BAE secured the $A35 billion contract ahead of Italy’s Fincantieri and Spanish company Navantia. The frigates will be known as the Hunter class and are expected to enter service in the late 2020s. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has indicated that the frigate program will create 4,000 jobs, while BAE has stated that the frigates will feature up to 70 per cent Australian content.

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BAE SYSTEMS PLC, FINCANTIERI CANTIERI NAVALI ITALIANI SPA, NAVANTIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, AUSTAL LIMITED – ASX ASB, ASC PTY LTD