K62 Finance

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence unchanged at 113.9 after RBA rate cut and Federal Budget

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 10-May-16

The ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rating for Australia remained unchanged at 113.9 in the week ended 8 May 2016. While the Reserve Bank’s cut to the official cash rate is likely to have been well received, any positive impact looks to have been somewhat offset by consumers’ reaction to the Commonwealth Budget. Consumers’ views towards their current personal finances fell 0.8 per cent, and consumers’ views toward the economic conditions in the next 12 months fell 1.2 per cent.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Volatile $A could hit US67c as further downside plays out

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Original article by Jessica Sier
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 10-May-16

Some currency experts have suggested that the recent sharp downturn in the value of the Australian dollar could continue. Mark Walton of BNP Paribas says the currency could fall to around $US0.67 if the Reserve Bank pursues further monetary policy easing. However, Robert Rennie of Westpac says the currency’s sell-off has been "rapid and unexpected", and he adds that it may find support from investors at around the $US0.73 to $US0.735 level.

CORPORATES
BNP PARIBAS SA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, FITCH RATINGS LIMITED, STANDARD AND POOR’S CORPORATION

ANZ dividend cut puts pressure on rivals to follow suit

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 18 : 4-May-16

The ANZ Bank reported a 2015-16 interim cash profit of $A2.8bn on 3 May 2016, which was slightly below market expectations. The banking major reduced its half-year dividend from $A0.86 per share to $A0.80, prompting speculation that National Australia Bank will do so as well when its interim results are released on 5 May. Omkar Joshi of Watermark Funds Management has welcomed ANZ’s decision to reduce its dividend payout ratio, while Katana Asset Management’s Romano Sala Tenna says the other major banks should follow its example.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, WATERMARK FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, KATANA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, INVESTORS MUTUAL LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, BANK FOR INTERNATIONAL SETTLEMENTS. BASEL COMMITTEE ON BANKING SUPERVISION

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence Ticks up 2.2pts to 113.9

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 3-May-16

The ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rating for Australia rose 2.0 per cent to 113.9 in the week ended 1 May 2016, partly reversing the fall in the previous week and bringing confidence back above its long run average. Consumers’ views towards their current personal finances rose 2.9 per cent, although households’ views towards the financial outlook fell by 0.9 per cent.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

RBA delivers Turnbull a pre-election rate cut

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Original article by Vesna Poljak
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 4-May-16

The Australian sharemarket gained 2.1 per cent on 3 May 2016, after the Reserve Bank reduced the cash rate by 25 basis points to a record low of 1.75 per cent in the wake of a downturn in inflation. The ANZ Bank is the only "big four" bank that is yet to confirm that it will respond by reducing its mortgage interest rates. Meanwhile, Westpac and the Commonwealth Bank expect another official interest rate cut in August, although Goldman Sachs forecasts that rates will remain on hold until November.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Westpac misses the profit mark

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Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 3-May-16

Shares in Australia’s major banks were sold down on 2 May 2016, after Westpac posted lower-than-expected cash earnings of $A3.9bn for the first half of 2015-16. This was three per cent higher than previously, but impairment charges rose by 96 per cent to $A667m and the bank’s return on equity fell to 14.2 per cent. CEO Brian Hartzer says Westpac will cease offering financial products that do not generate a sufficient return. Shareholders will receive an unchanged interim dividend of $A0.94 per share.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, ARRIUM LIMITED – ASX ARI, SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, ARNHEM INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Pressure on dividends in bank earnings

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Original article by Clancy Yeates
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 16 : 2-May-16

The earnings and dividend payouts of Australia’s four major banks will come under scrutiny in the first week of May 2016, with three set to release their half-year results. Westpac is tipped to post an interim net profit of at least $A4bn, while the ANZ Bank and National Australia Bank are expected to report half-year profits of about $A3.58bn and $A3.34bn respectively. Hugh Dive of Aurora Funds Management says NAB is the most likely to reduce its dividend payout, although Mark Nathan of Arnhem Asset Management believes that all four major banks will leave dividends unchanged in the near-term.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AURORA FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED, ARNHEM INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CLSA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, WATERMARK FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, DICK SMITH HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX DSH, ARRIUM LIMITED – ASX ARI, PEABODY ENERGY CORPORATION

Traders kiss goodbye to Aussie’s high hopes

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Original article by Stephen Cauchi
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 29-Apr-16

The Australian dollar has retreated from recent highs after the latest inflation data showed that the CPI fell by 0.2 per cent in the March 2016 quarter. Currency traders now do not expect the currency to test the $US0.80 level in the near-term, while the inflation data has also heightened expectations of further monetary policy easing. However, currency strategists are divided about the outlook for the dollar, with year-end forecasts ranging from $A0.70 to $A0.78.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, HSBC AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS PTY LTD, MARKET ECONOMICS PTY LTD, CAPITAL ECONOMICS LIMITED, THINKFOREX

Business Confidence jumps again in April – up 7.4pts to 123.1

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 28-Apr-16

A Roy Morgan Business Single Source survey has found that Australian business confidence rose by 7.4 points (or 6.4 per cent) to 123.1 in April 2016. Business confidence has now risen 12.5 points over the last three months, since a 2016 low of 110.6 in January. The rise in Business Confidence comes after more improvement on the Australian sharemarket in April, and as commodity prices rebounded in recent months following increased global stimulus. The level of business confidence in April is clearly positive for the economy overall and is now above the five-year average of 116.8. The strongest indicators in April relate to the upcoming year, with expectations of business performance over the next 12 months (+38.1) and whether the next 12 months will be a "good/bad time to invest" (+26.3).

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX ALL ORDINARIES INDEX, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence dips to 111.7

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 27-Apr-16

The ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rating for Australia fell 3.5 per cent to 111.7 in the week ended 24 April 2016, reversing the bounce in the previous week and falling back below its long run average. Consumers’ views towards their current personal finances fell by 3.3 per cent, although consumers’ views towards their future personal situation rose by 1.3 per cent. Roy Morgan Research executive chairman Gary Morgan says the fall in consumer confidence can be attributed to the economic uncertainty over the closure of Arrium and Electrolux, and continuing announcements of redundancies at several companies, and is also not surprising when one considers the pressures on the Australian economy – many of these issues are exacerbated by the Reserve Bank’s insistence on keeping interest rates much higher (currently at 2 per cent) than comparable commodity economies.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA