Author: roymorgansocial

Shorten blasted for doctored notes

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 25-May-18

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has denied suggestions that his office doctored the transcript of a TV interview given by Labor MP Linda Burney. Her staffer, David Tan, transcribed the interview that appeared on Sky News. Tan contends that he made an "innocent mistake", while Burney says Tan has been counselled over what has been described as a "grossly inaccurate transcription". Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said the transcript amounted to a "deliberate act of fabrication", while Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said the interview was "falsified".

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Netflix is now worth more than Disney and Comcast

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Paul R. La Monica
CNNMoney – Page: Online : 25-May-18

The market capitalisation of subscription video-on-demand giant Netflix has risen to $US151.6bn, surpassing that of traditional media groups Walt Disney Company and Comcast. Disney’s market capitalisation was $US151bn on 24 May, while Comcast is currently valued at $US144bn. Netflix had already overtaken 21st Century Fox, Time Warner, CBS and Viacom in terms of market value.

CORPORATES
NETFLIX INCORPORATED, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, COMCAST CORPORATION, 21ST CENTURY FOX INCORPORATED, TIME WARNER INCORPORATED, CBS CORPORATION, VIACOM INCORPORATED, AT&T CORPORATION, VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INCORPORATED, AOL, YAHOO! INCORPORATED, HULU LLC, CNN, AMAZON PRIME VIDEO

ASIC in sweeping IPO crackdown over favourable treatment

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 25-May-18

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission has warned stockbrokers that it will clamp down on favourable treatment of certain investors when it comes to allocating shares via IPOs. Cathie Armour of ASIC says it is important that brokers keep the needs of the issuer client in mind when allocating shares. She also says ASIC is concerned about listing standards, particularly with regard to overseas companies that seem to have little business interest in Australia that seek to list on the local bourse.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, STOCKBROKERS AND FINANCIAL ADVISERS ASSOCIATION LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FINANCIAL ADVISER STANDARDS AND ETHICS STANDARDS AUTHORITY

Santos and ENN in an awkward spot after Harbour bid rejected

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Simon Evans, Michael Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 25-May-18

Oil and gas producer Santos announced on 22 May that it had rejected a $A14.4 billion takeover bid from private equity firm Harbour Energy. Chinese gas firm ENN, which is a major shareholder in Santos, did not take part in the board’s decision to reject Harbour’s bid, as it had backed the Harbour offer. Santos CEO Kevin Gallagher says he does not expect there to be any tension on its board as a result of the decision to reject the offer, while Macquarie Capital has described the decision as a "bold move".

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, HARBOUR ENERGY LIMITED, ENN ECOLOGICAL HOLDINGS COMPANY LIMITED, MACQUARIE CAPITAL PTY LTD, HONY CAPITAL, ENERGYQUEST PTY LTD

ABC to spend up big on digital ads

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Dana McCauley
The Australian – Page: 3 : 25-May-18

The ABC’s CFO Louise Higgins has revealed that the public broadcaster will allocate around $1.4m to advertising on Facebook during 2018, while its budget for Google’s AdWords will be about $A500,000. However, Higgins has rejected suggestions that the ABC is using taxpayers’ funds to compete with commercial TV networks. She also told a Senate estimates committee hearing that the ABC has an obligation to make consumers aware of the content it produces.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIA. SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMICS, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Lawyers alarmed by Hayne inquisition

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Misa Han
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 34 : 25-May-18

There are suggestions that the banking royal commission lacks procedural fairness, both for companies and individuals that appear before it. Dr Matt Collins, who is the ANZ Bank’s chief counsel and president of the Victorian bar, notes that the rules of evidence that apply in a normal court do not apply in a royal commission, and this means that some of the evidence given before the commission can be unreliable. Grant Hoole from the Gilbert + Tobin Centre of Public Law at the University of New South Wales says witnesses before a royal commission who are facing serious allegations should have the right to be questioned by their own counsel, for the sake of fairness.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES, GILBERT AND TOBIN LAWYERS, HENDERSON MAXWELL PTY LTD

Trump calls off N Korea summit

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Cameron Stewart
The Australian – Page: 1 : 25-May-18

US President Donald Trump has attributed his decision to withdraw from a summit with Kim Jong-un on 12 June to the "tremendous anger and open hostility" of recent statements issued by the North Korean leader. Trump described the cancelled summit as a "missed opportunity" in a letter to Kim, but indicated that he is open to proceeding with the summit if North Korea is prepared to do so. Trump also thanked Kim for releasing three US hostages.

CORPORATES
UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Bank’s conduct unconscionable

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Ben Butler
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 25-May-18

Westpac faces a maximum fine of $A3.3m after the Federal Court upheld three unconscionable conduct charges with regard to the bank bill swap rate. However, the court ruled that the trades did not amount to market manipulation. Westpac would have faced penalties of up to $A2bn under revised laws that took effect after the offences in question. Its three major rivals had agreed to out-of-court settlements with the Australian Securities & Investments Commission over allegations of unconscionable conduct.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

It’s official: Most Australians now visit news or newspaper websites

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 25-May-18

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey shows that nearly 15.7 million Australians aged 14+ (almost 78%) accessed news or newspaper websites in an average four weeks during the year to March 2018. News.com.au is visited by nearly 5.9 million Australians in an average four-week period, ahead of the Sydney Morning Herald (5.3 million visitors) and ABC News (just over five million visitors). Of Australia’s 20 leading news websites, nine are direct extensions of leading Australian newspaper mastheads, led by the SMH, The Daily Telegraph and The Age. A further seven of the leading websites are primarily Internet channels, led by news.com.au and Daily Mail.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Optus to hang up on Virgin Mobile

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Supratim Adhikari
The Australian – Page: 19 : 24-May-18

Optus has confirmed that it will discontinue the Virgin Mobile brand in Australia, as part of its strategy to reduce costs. The decision to scrap the brand will result in the closure of about 36 stores and the loss of 200 jobs. Meanwhile, the Federal Court has ordered Optus to pay a $A1.5m fine after it falsely advised broadband customers that they had just 30 days rather than up to 18 months to switch to the NBN when it became available in their area.

CORPORATES
SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, VIRGIN MOBILE (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, VIRGIN MOBILE HOLDINGS (UK) PLC, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, NBN CO LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AMAYSIM AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX AYS, THE KANTAR GROUP, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS