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Investors pile into ASX amid Wall Street exodus

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 30-Apr-25

Australian-listed companies have benefited from a global shift of capital away from Wall Street in 2025, amid the turmoil caused by the Trump administration’s trade policies. Foreign investors owned a record 18 per cent of US stocks at the start of the year. However, Goldman Sachs estimates that foreign investors have sold $US60bn ($93.2bn) worth of US shares in recent weeks. Elise McKay from Pendal says this trend may have contributed to the S&P/ASX 20’s outperformance last week; it gained 2.5 per cent, while the benchmark ASX 200 rose by just 1.9 per cent.

CORPORATES
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, PENDAL GROUP LIMITED, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 20 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX

Bitcoin emerges from bear market as traders tip $US125K

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 29-Apr-25

The price of bitcoin rose by 12 per cent last week, compared with a 6.7 per cent gain for the Nasdaq. The cryptocurrency recorded its largest weekly rise since shortly after Donald Trump won the US presidential election in November. It subsequently peaked at around $US109,000 following his inauguration in late January, before falling sharply in response to the tariffs-induced trade war. Tony Sycamore from IG believes that bitcoin could test its record level again, adding that there is potential for it to rise to around $US125,000.

CORPORATES
IG MARKETS LIMITED, NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX

ASX faces bear market as profit recession looms

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 23-Apr-25

The S&P/ASX 200 Index has shed more than nine per cent since reaching a record high in mid-February. MST Marquee believes that the local bourse is set for a further decline; senior research analyst Hasan Tevfik says both corporate profits and economic growth are set to fall. The general consenus of market watchers is that companies in the ASX 200 will record earnings growth of about nine per cent in 2025-26, but MST anticipates a modest earnings contraction; this in turn will result in an earnings-per-share recession. Tevfik notes that Australia has experienced a bear market in each of the last six such recessions.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MST MARQUEE

ASX’s $42b plunge seals worst start in years

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 1-Apr-25

Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 shed 3.9 per cent during the first quarter of 2025; this represents the local bourse’s worst start to a calendar year since the onset of the pandemic in 2020. However, Australian equities have outperformed Wall Street, with the S&P 500 having shed 5.1 per cent in the first quarter and 6.3 per cent in the month of March. Meanwhile, Matthew Sherwood from Perpetual estimates that the chances of a recession is now more than 30 per cent, adding that the Trump’s administration’s impending tariff reforms will be a key driver of the global economic outlook in the near-term.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPT

ASX faces dividend horror story as companies slash payouts

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 5-Mar-25

The combined dividend payout for companies in the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index was just $31.2bn in the February reporting season. Bell Potter strategist Richard Coppleson notes that it is the lowest payout for this period since 2021, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The three major listed iron ore miners reduced their dividends in response to a sharp fall in the price of the steel input during 2024. Citigroup expects further decline in the mining sector’s dividends, amid expectations that the iron ore price will also fall as new supply enters the market later in 2025. The firm also anticipates lower dividends from bank stocks, which dominate the ASX along with resources stocks.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD

Finance sector has gender balance – except the pay gap

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Original article by Helen Trinca
The Australian – Page: 15 : 4-Mar-25

The Workplace Gender Equality Agency’s latest annual report shows that women now comprise 53 per cent of workers in Australia’s banking, finance and insurance sector. However, the report notes that the gender pay gap in this sector is 22.3 per cent, compared with the national pay gap of 12.1 per cent. The average gender pay gap for the nation’s four major banks ranges from 18.8 per cent to 22.4 per cent; in contrast the average pay gap at Morgan Stanley is 58.6 per cent, although its base salary gap is just 37.3 per cent. Meanwhile, women comprise just 36 per cent of the top remuneration quartile in the financial services industry, and predominantly work in roles that have lower pay.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. WORKPLACE GENDER EQUALITY AGENCY

Local funds at risk with $28 billion exposure to Nvidia

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Original article by Alex Gluyas
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 29-Jan-25

Shares in US semiconductor manufacturer Nvidia fell by 17 per cent on Tuesday, reducing its market capitalisation by nearly $US600bn. Analysis by VanEck shows that Australian fund managers and superannuation funds hold about $28bn worth of Nvidia’s shares, although this figure may be higher given that some funds do not disclose their holdings. Sam Sicilia from Hostplus says all high-performing stocks must decline at some point, and the question is whether Nvidia’s share price will rebound and what impact it will have on the broader sharemarket.

CORPORATES
NVIDIA CORPORATION, VANECK, HOST-PLUS

ASX listings climb with hopes for more

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Original article by Matt Bell
The Australian – Page: 18 : 8-Jan-25

A total of 67 companies listed on the Australian sharemarket in 2024, compared with just 45 in the previous calendar year. It also follows 107 new listings in 2022 and 241 in 2021. However, takeovers and de-listings resulted in the number of companies on the ASX falling from 2,191 in 2023 to 2,116 at the end of 2024. James Posnett from the ASX is upbeat about the outlook for new listings in 2025, noting that there has been increased confidence and renewed interest in listing in recent months.

CORPORATES
ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX

ASX 200 tops 8500 on Santa rally

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Original article by Joanne Tran
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 4-Dec-24

Tribeca Investment Partners portfolio manager Jun Bei Liu says the Black Friday sales should boost investor sentiment in the lead-up to Christmas. Liu notes that the S&P/ASX 200 consumer discretionary index gained seven per cent in November; it also rose by 1.2 per cent on Tuesday, contributing to the S&P/ASX 200’s rise above the 8,500-point level for the first time. Andrew Mitchell from Ophir Asset Management says Donald Trump’s presidential election win has prompted renewed optimism among investors in the US and Australia.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY INDEX, TRIBECA INVESTMENT PARTNERS PTY LTD, OPHIR ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

WiseTech helps Aussie tech beat Nasdaq

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Original article by Joanne Tran
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 3-Dec-24

The S&P/ASX 200 Techology Index had gained 56.4 per cent so far in 2024. The index has outperformed the Australian sharemarket’s other 11 industry groups and the technology-focused NASDAQ-100 in the US, which has gained 24.4 per cent. WiseTech Global, Life360, Xero and Technology One are amongst the ASX-listed technology stocks that have rallied in 2024. Tim Riordan from Blackwattle Investment Partners says factors such as the strong financial metrics of tech stocks has bolstered investor support for the sector. He adds that concerns about the outlook for resources stocks has also prompted investors to favour the tech sector.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 TECHNOLOGY INDEX, NASDAQ, WISETECH GLOBAL LIMITED – ASX WTC, LIFE360 INCORPORATED – ASX 360, XERO LIMITED – ASX XRO, TECHNOLOGY ONE LIMITED – ASX TNE, BLACKWATTLE INVESTMENT PARTNERS PTY LTD