K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

HK exchange in London bid

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Original article by Steven Russolillo
The Australian – Page: 17 & 27 : 12-Sep-19

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX) has launched an unsolicited takeover bid for the London Stock Exchange (LSE). LSE has indicated it will consider the bid, which is valued at Stg29.6 billion ($53.27 billion), and which it described as "unsolicited, preliminary and highly conditional". The HKEX bid for the LSE is aimed at preventing the proposed merger between the LSE and financial-information provider Refinitiv Holding, which was announced in August. In commenting on the HKEX bid, the LSE stated it remained committed to its bid for Refinitiv.

CORPORATES
HONG KONG EXCHANGES AND CLEARING LIMITED LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE REFINITIV RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP

Hopes for tariff truce as US, China resume talks

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 28 : 6-Sep-19

Sharemarkets across the Asia-Pacific region rallied on 5 September as investors welcomed news that the US and China will hold trade discussions in early October. Both nations imposed new tariffs at the start of September, while the US is scheduled to increase tariffs on a range of Chinese goods on 1 October. Meanwhile, financial markets have priced in an 88 per cent chance that the Reserve Bank of Australia will reduce official interest rates in October, followed by another rate cut by May.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, SHANGHAI COMPOSITE INDEX, NIKKEI 225 INDEX, KOSPI INDEX, HANG SENG INDEX

S&P gives AMP thumbs down over bad news

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Original article by James Frost
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 28-Aug-19

The credit rating of wealth manager AMP has been downgraded from ‘A-‘ to ‘BBB+’ by S&P Global Ratings. The long-term issuer credit rating of AMP Bank and AMP Life have also been downgraded by one notch apiece. S&P has indicated that the ratings downgrade was primarily due to the recent deal to sell AMP Life to Resolution Life, which will have an impact on AMP’s group credit profile. S&P also said it may review AMP’s credit rating if the deal does not proceed, although this may not result in an upgrade.

CORPORATES
AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, AMP LIFE LIMITED, AMP BANK LIMITED, S&P GLOBAL RATINGS, RESOLUTION LIFE GROUP LIMITED

Funds brace for more volatility

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Original article by William McInnes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 27 : 27-Aug-19

Federation Asset Management chairman Greg Bundy says financial markets will keep falling, as he does not expect the US-China trade war to be resolved for some time. Matt Sherwood of Perpetual agrees that there is unlikely to be a quick resolution to the trade dispute. Bearish sentiment slashed the value of Australian stocks by around $26bn on 26 August, while the yield on 10-year Australian government bonds fell to 0.88 per cent. Shares in gold producers also rallied as investors sought out ‘safe-haven’ assets.

CORPORATES
FEDERATION ASSET MANAGEMENT, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

Financial advisers too expensive and can’t be trusted: report

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Original article by Duncan Hughes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 27-Aug-19

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission has released the findings of a survey on consumers’ attitudes toward the financial advice sector. It shows that there is a high level of distrust regarding the sector; amongst other things, about 50 per cent of respondents believe that financial advisers are more concerned about making themselves rich than helping clients, while almost 30 per cent prefer to obtain financial advice from family members, friends or colleagues. The ASIC report is based on interviews with almost 2,500 investors.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP

AMP accused of leaving planners in limbo

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 12 : 20-Aug-19

The Finance Sector Union will ask the Fair Work Commission to intervene over AMP’s plans to revamp its financial planning operations. AMP has indicated that it intends to reduce the amount it pays when acquiring financial planning practices as a ‘buyer of last resort’, as well as cutting adviser numbers. The AMP Financial Planners Association will hold a meeting during August to allow members to vote on possible courses of legal action against AMP.

CORPORATES
AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, FINANCE SECTOR UNION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AMP FINANCIAL PLANNERS ASSOCIATION

Exorbitant registry fees in ASIC’s sights

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Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 21 : 15-Aug-19

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission is believed to be launching an investigation into the exit fees charged by share registry providers Computershare and Boardroom. This follows a complaint by fellow provider Automic, which stated to the ACCC in December that competition in the share registry sector was being stifled by the ‘exit fees’ that Computershare and Boardroom were charging clients who wanted to shift their business. A Computershare spokesperson has stated that it does not engage in anti-competitive practice.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, COMPUTERSHARE LIMITED – ASX CPU, BOARDROOM LIMITED, AUTOMIC

$47bn lost as currency war erupts

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 25 : 7-Aug-19

The Australian sharemarket has shed 5.4 per cent since reaching a record high in late July, as fears of a currency war add to tensions over the ongoing US-China trade war. However, Richard Coppleson of Bell Potter has downplayed concerns about the outlook for equities, saying a bear market is unlikely. He says there is not yet an all-out trade war, while interest rates are set to remain low. Shane Oliver of AMP Capital also does not expect a bear market, although he says shares are likely to fall further in the short-term.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, PEOPLE’S BANK OF CHINA, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, SHANGHAI COMPOSITE INDEX, HANG SENG INDEX, NIKKEI 225 INDEX, TAIEX INDEX, FTSE STRAITS TIMES INDEX, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF COMMERCE, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Share surge welcome but devil’s in the detail

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 27 : 1-Aug-19

The Australian sharemarket gained 21 per cent in the first seven months of 2019, its best start to a calendar year since 1991. However, Jason Steed of JP Morgan still expects the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 to be trading at around 6,300 points at the end of 2019. He notes that although forward earning-per-share estimates have been revised upwards, this is primarily due to the mining sector. Meanwhile, Tony Brennan of Citigroup says the prospect of further official interest rate cuts could see the ASX 200 reach his firm’s mid-2020 target of 7,000 points.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD

ASX hits record high, topping 2007 peak

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 25 : 31-Jul-19

The S&P/ASX 200 has more than doubled since reaching a low of 3,120.8 points during the global financial crisis. The Australian market’s year-to-date gain of 21 per cent is its strongest since 1991, potentially putting it on track for the best year since 2009. Meanwhile, Shane Oliver of AMP Capital warns that the 2019 rally means there is the risk of a short term correction, and Hasan Tevfik of MST Marquee says the market’s high forward price-to-earnings ratio means investors need to be "quite selective" about the stocks they buy.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, MST MARQUEE, PENGANA CAPITAL GROUP LIMITED – ASX PCG, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD