K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

Storm clouds gathering after a promising start

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 24 : 30-Jan-19

Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 has gained more than four per cent so far in 2019, putting it on track to achieve its best performance in the month of January in five years. However, the local market could face a number of headwinds in the near-term, including the outlook for US interest rates and trade negotiations between the US and China. There is growing speculation that the Federal Reserve will pause its monetary policy tightening in 2019, and the exact timing of the next move in the cash rate remains uncertain.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, PEPPERSTONE GROUP LIMITED, JP MORGAN AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES COMPANY LIMITED

Sharemarkets burst out of blocks

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 15 & 18 : 29-Jan-19

The S&P/ASX 200 has gained 4.6 per cent so far in January 2019, and it has risen eight per cent since reaching a two-year low in December. Jason Steed of JP Morgan says the benchmark index could test the 6,300-point level by the end of 2019, which implies a 12 per cent gain for the year. Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank expects the S&P/ASX 200 to finish the year at 6,150 points. Overseas sharemarkets have also started the year strongly, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average having risen for five consecutive weeks.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, SYDNEY AIRPORT – ASX SYD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, ARISTOCRAT LEISURE LIMITED – ASX ALL, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, BLUESCOPE STEEL LIMITED – ASX BSL, BRAMBLES LIMITED – ASX BXB, RELIANCE WORLDWIDE CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX RWC, TREASURY WINE ESTATES LIMITED – ASX TWE

Funds end in the red after a horror year

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 15 & 22 : 18-Jan-19

Data from Mercer shows that long-only Australian share funds posted a median loss of 4.2 per cent in 2018, compared with a loss of 2.7 per cent for the S&P/ASX200 Accumulation Index. The December quarter was particularly challenging, with the median active Australian share fund losing 9.6 per cent before fees and the ASX200 Accumulation Index falling 8.1 per cent. Panther Trust Australian Shares, a boutique long-only fund, was the top performer in 2018 with a return of 5.6 per cent.

CORPORATES
MERCER INVESTMENTS PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 ACCUMULATION INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, PANTHER TRUST AUSTRALIAN SHARES FUND, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, BENNELONG FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, IDP EDUCATION LIMITED – ASX IEL, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, AFTERPAY TOUCH GROUP LIMITED – ASX APT, RESOLUTE MINING LIMITED – ASX RSG, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, BANK OF QUEENSLAND LIMITED – ASX BOQ, ASALEO CARE LIMITED – ASX AHY, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX, FLIGHT CENTRE TRAVEL GROUP LIMITED – ASX FLT, BELL ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED – ASX BLM, APPLE INCORPORATED, MASTERCARD INTERNATIONAL INCORPORATED, MICROSOFT CORPORATION, ALPHABET INCORPORATED

Looming federal election puts a dampener on dealmaking

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Original article by Scott Murdoch
The Australian – Page: 13 & 18 : 17-Jan-19

Data from Acuris shows that mergers and acquisitions activity in Australia totalled $US88.5bn ($123bn) in 2018, compared with $US85.6bn previously. Joe Fayyad from Bank of America Merrill Lynch notes that the upcoming federal election will affect inbound M&A activity in 2019, which will boost local companies’ ability to transact deals. Meanwhile, Aidan Allen of UBS expects M&A activity in 2019 to be dominated by private equity firms and Australian companies making offshore acquisitions.

CORPORATES
ACURIS, BANK OF AMERICA CORPORATION, MERRILL LYNCH AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, MACQUARIE CAPITAL PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AMCOR LIMITED – ASX AMC, BEMIS MANUFACTURING COMPANY, REECE AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX REH, MORSCO, WORLEYPARSONS LIMITED – ASX WOR, JACOBS ENGINEERING GROUP INCORPORATED, GOLDMAN SACHS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED

Hurdles ahead, but ASX could reach 6000

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 18 : 9-Jan-19

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 reached an intra-day high of 5,733.7 points on 8 January, having fallen to 5,410.2 points on 24 December. Morgan Stanley says the financial services royal commission, the upcoming federal election, the impact of falling house prices on consumer confidence and the outlook for the Chinese economy are key risks for the local bourse in the near-term. However, Chris Nicol and Daniel Blake of Morgan Stanley expect the market to rise above 6,000 points in 2019.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, MORGAN STANLEY AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, APPLE INCORPORATED

Challenging year in the offing for ASX listings

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Original article by William McInnes
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 12 & 16 : 8-Jan-19

More than 130 companies debuted on the Australian sharemarket in 2018, but stock exchange operator ASX Limited expects the environment for new listings to be difficult in 2019. Max Cunningham, the ASX’s executive general manager of listings, says the first quarter in particular will be challenging given the recent market volatility, although the outlook for calendar 2019 will become clearer by March or April. He adds that several large technology companies are looking at IPOs, and he notes increased listing activity in the mining sector.

CORPORATES
ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL, PROPERTY EXCHANGE AUSTRALIA, COLONIAL FIRST STATE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT, WISETECH GLOBAL LIMITED – ASX WTC, XERO LIMITED – ASX XRO, APPEN LIMITED – ASX APX

After all the carnage, it may soon be time to buy

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 18 : 8-Jan-19

The S&P/ASX 200’s recent rally has seen its 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio return to its long-term average following a sharp sell-down in the December quarter. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 is trading at around eight per cent below its long-term average. The near-term outlook for equities may depend on a range of factors, including trade negotiations between the US and China.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, NIKKEI 225 INDEX, BANK OF AMERICA CORPORATION, MERRILL LYNCH AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, MSCI ALL COUNTRY WORLD INDEX

Rethink company strikes: Maxsted

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Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 15 & 16 : 4-Jan-19

The remuneration reports of three major banks attracted large protest votes at AGMs in December, putting them at risk of a board spill in 2019. Westpac chairman Lindsay Maxsted says the threshold for a ‘first strike’ is too low at 25 per cent, arguing that most resolutions put to annual meetings require a minimum vote of 50 per cent. Some 88 per cent of National Australia Bank shareholders voted against its remuneration report, while Westpac’s attracted a ‘no’ vote of 64.2 per cent.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL OF SUPERANNUATION INVESTORS INCORPORATED

Wall Street ends year with worst losses since GFC

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Original article by Georgi Kantchev, Akane Otani
The Australian – Page: 17 : 2-Jan-19

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 5.6 per cent in 2018, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq retreated 6.2 per cent and 3.9 per cent respectively. However, all three indices posted gains on the final day of the year, with the Dow rising by 1.1 per cent. Despite the late rally, Wall Street recorded its biggest annual loss since the global financial crisis. Geoffrey Yu of UBS Wealth Management expects further market volatility in 2019. Meanwhile, the UK’s FTSE 100 and the Stoxx Europe 600 both fell by 13 per cent during 2018, and the Shanghai Composite shed 25 per cent.

CORPORATES
DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, UBS WEALTH MANAGEMENT, FTSE 100 INDEX, STOXX EUROPE 600 INDEX, SHANGHAI COMPOSITE INDEX, NIKKEI 225 INDEX, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF LABOR, BOEING COMPANY, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, CHICAGO BOARD OPTIONS EXCHANGE VOLATILITY INDEX

ASX headed for bounce in 2019

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Original article by Tim Boyd
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 2-Jan-19

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 shed 6.9 per cent in 2018, ending the year at 5,646.4 points. However, economists are generally upbeat about the outlook for the Australian sharemarket in 2019. Stephen Koukoulas of Market Economics says the market could gain around 20 per cent, while Stephen Roberts of Laminar Capital forecasts a rise of 8-12 per cent. Meanwhile, Marcel Thieliant of Capital Economics expects the S&P 500 to shed around 15 per cent in 2019, which in turn is likely to weigh on the Australian market.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MARKET ECONOMICS PTY LTD, LAMINAR CAPITAL, CAPITAL ECONOMICS LIMITED, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, RUSSELL INVESTMENTS PTY LTD, TD SECURITIES, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA