K62 Finance

Markets drive Macquarie to bumper $1.5bn

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Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 21 : 20-Jan-15

Investment banking firm Macquarie Group has again raised its 2014-15 profit forecast, for the second time in half a year, and now expects a result of up to $A1.52bn that would be close to an all-time high. The increase by between 10% and 20% is based on an improved trading environment as well as the decline in the Australian dollar foreign exchange rate. Experts note that Macquarie’s fixed-income, currencies and commodities operations perform better in times of heightened volatility. On 19 January 2015 the stock closed 5.4% higher at $A58.25

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, CLSA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, BELL FINANCIAL GROUP LIMITED – ASX BFG, MACQUARIE SECURITIES PTY LTD

Cashed-up private equity firms on the prowl for acquisitions

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Original article by Sally Rose
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 19-Jan-15

Australian ­Private Equity & Venture Capital Association CEO Yasser El-Ansary expects local private equity firms to pursue acquisitions in 2015, after offloading many businesses in 2014. He notes that Australian private equity groups’ cash holdings now exceed $A6bn. Offshore private equity groups are also expected to target the Australian market, with falling valuations in the resources sector likely to attract the interest of firms such as Kohlberg Kravis Roberts

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN PRIVATE EQUITY AND VENTURE CAPITAL ASSOCIATION LIMITED,{SPAC}KOHLBERG KRAVIS ROBERTS AND COMPANY,{SPAC}KKR AND COMPANY LP,{SPAC}TPG CAPITAL LP,{SPAC}PACIFIC EQUITY PARTNERS PTY LTD,{SPAC}QUADRANT PRIVATE EQUITY PTY LTD,{SPAC}BIS INDUSTRIES LIMITED,{SPAC}FINDEX AUSTRALIA PTY LTD,{SPAC}STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX,{SPAC}DENHAM CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LP,{SPAC}PEMBROKE RESOURCES PTY LTD,{SPAC}AUCTUS MINERALS PTY LTD,{SPAC}SPOTLESS GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SPO,{SPAC}ASALEO CARE LIMITED – ASX AHY,{SPAC}HOYTS CINEMAS LIMITED,{SPAC}GRIFFIN FOODS LIMITED,{SPAC}PETERS ICE CREAM,{SPAC}CAMPAIGN MONITOR PTY LTD,{SPAC}INSIGHT VENTURE PARTNERS,{SPAC}CHAMP VENTURES PTY LTD,{SPAC}SENSIS PTY LTD,{SPAC}PLATINUM EQUITY HOLDINGS,{SPAC}VELOCITY FREQUENT FLYER PTY LTD,{SPAC}AFFINITY EQUITY PARTNERS (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

Slow season spurs rate cut call

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Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 19 : 19-Jan-15

The latest quarterly business sentiment survey by the Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ACCI), covering the final three months of calendar 2014, shows a marked deterioration. Retailers note that the pre-Christmas period was the weakest since 1992, and there is a general feeling that economic conditions will worsen and the jobless rate rise. ACCI CEO Kate Carnell is urging the Federal Government to roll out reforms, and the Reserve Bank of Australia to lower the official cash interest rate that has been left unchanged at 2.5% for 14 months

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY,{SPAC}RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Chance of rate cuts recede

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Original article by Vesna Poljak, Joanna Heath
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 16-Jan-15

New figures show that 37,400 jobs were created in Australia during December 2014, with the unemployment rate easing to 6.1 per cent. The general consensus of economists was that about 5,000 jobs had been created. The labour market figures may weaken the case for further easing of monetary policy, with Michael Blythe of the Commonwealth Bank forecasting that the cash rate will remain unchanged in 2015. However, the ANZ Bank expects two rate cuts in the next year

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, WORLD BANK, LIBERAL-NATIONAL PARTY OF QUEENSLAND, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET, WATPAC LIMITED – ASX WTP, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Business satisfaction with banks reaches new high – but big four lag behind smaller banks

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 13-Jan-15

A Roy Morgan Research Business Single Source survey has found that the satisfaction level of the business customers of Australia’s four major banks was 67.6 per cent in the six months to November 2014. Satisfaction with non-big four banks was 72.2 per cent. The overall satisfaction level of Australian business banking customers is at a record high of 69.6 per cent, compared with 61.4 per cent in 2010. Westpac had the highest satisfaction rating in November (71.6 per cent). Meanwhile, the satisfaction level of the personal customers of Australian banks is now 82.8 per cent, a 6.5 per cent increase since 2010

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, 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

Lower $A to fuel foreign profit growth

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 13-Jan-15

The eight per cent fall in the value of the Australian dollar during 2014 has been a boon for companies with a significant presence offshore, particularly in the US. The shares of companies with strong earnings in the US rose by 12.7 per cent in 2014, and Chris Nicol of Morgan Stanley is upbeat about the earnings outlook for stocks such as Macquarie Group, CSL, Goodman Group and Ansell in 2015

CORPORATES
MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, GOODMAN GROUP – ASX GMG, ANSELL LIMITED – ASX ANN, ALS LIMITED – ASX ALQ, BRAMBLES LIMITED – ASX BXB, NAVITAS LIMITED – ASX NVT, PHILO CAPITAL ADVISERS PTY LTD, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, RESMED INCORPORATED – ASX RMD, SONIC HEALTHCARE LIMITED – ASX SHL, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, INCITEC PIVOT LIMITED – ASX IPL

Bank profits to slow, says Fitch

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Original article by Clancy Yeates
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 13-Jan-15

Fitch Ratings notes that a decline in bad debts has contributed to the growth of Australian banks’ profits in recent years. However, a new report from Fitch warns that the banks are likely to face a rise in bad debts in 2015, which will result in lower profit growth. Factor such as rising competition in the home loans sector will also adversely affect growth in earnings

CORPORATES
FITCH RATINGS LIMITED, 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, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Provident ‘the fault of trustees’

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Original article by Kylar Loussikian
The Australian – Page: 17 : 8-Jan-15

A class action suit is being launched by law firm Slater & Gordon on behalf of investors who lost funds in the mid-2012 collapse of Provident Capital. It will be alleged that Australian Executor Trustees was not diligent enough in its supervision of the debentures business, and should have realised in late 2010 that were insufficient reserves to secure the loans written by Provident. The equity ratio in 2008-09 was just 6.43%, compared with the Australian Securities & Investments Commission’s stipulated minimum of 20%

CORPORATES
SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, PROVIDENT CAPITAL LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN EXECUTOR TRUSTEES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL RESERVE LIMITED, FINCORP PTY LTD, MERIDIAN LAWYERS LIMITED

Spooked investors see local bond yields drop to record lows

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Original article by Mark Mulligan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 24 : 8-Jan-15

The yield on 10-year Australian government bonds reached a record low of 2.65 per cent on 7 January 2015. Bond yields in Europe and the US have also fallen sharply amid a growing trend for investors to shun equities in favour of assets that offer lower risk. Charlie Jamieson of Jamieson Coote Bonds notes that Australian bonds remain appealing to global investors due to a relatively high yield and their "AAA" credit rating

CORPORATES
JAMIESONCOOTEBONDS PTY LTD, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK, ARDEA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FIDELITY WORLDWIDE INVESTMENT, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, CREDIT SUISSE AG

Charges laid over $110m loan fraud

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Original article by Chris Vedelago, Georgia Wilkins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 7-Jan-15

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission has issued details on a case of two men allegedly committing fraud against the four main banks and other mortgage lenders. It is being claimed that the accused used the Footscray branch of Myra Financial Services to lodge loan applications with sham documents, causing a loss of a total $A110m across 350 mortgages. Prison terms of up to 15 years each may be imposed, on a charge of obtaining financial advantage by deception

CORPORATES
MYRA FINANCIAL SERVICES, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, CIGNA FINANCIAL PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FINANCE GROUP PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, MELBOURNE MAGISTRATES’ COURT, PREMIUM FINANCIAL SERVICES, RAMS HOME LOANS PTY LTD