K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

ASX’s $100b rally could be far from over, analysts predict

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Original article by Jessica Sier, Patrick Commins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 27 : 19-Oct-17

The Australian sharemarket had been range-bound since May, but a rally in the last nine trading sessions has increased its capitalisation by about $A100bn. JP Morgan’s Jason Steed says the near-term outlook for the local bourse will depend to a large extent on financial and mining stocks, which dominate the market. However, Steed adds that investors are looking for greater political certainty, particularly with regard to issues such as energy policy and regulation of the banking sector.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, TOKYO STOCK PRICE INDEX, DEUTSCHER AKTIEN INDEX

‘Market vulnerable to 1987-style crash’

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 16-Oct-17

With the 30th anniversary of the Black Monday stock market crash of October 1987 approaching, experts warn that there is the potential for another sharemarket rout. Former ASX chairman Maurice Newman was the head of Bain & Company at the time of the 1987 crash. He notes that sharemarket valuations are again highly inflated, and share prices are now well above those that prevailed immediately before previous crashes. The former CEO of the Sydney Futures Exchange, Les Hosking, also warns that financial markets are vulnerable to another crash.

CORPORATES
ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, SYDNEY FUTURES EXCHANGE LIMITED, BAIN AND COMPANY

ASX stalls as world hits top gear

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 19 & 30 : 13-Oct-17

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index has risen by 2.3 per cent so far in 2017, including a 2.5 per cent gain in the last five trading sessions. However, it is still 15 per cent below its peak, and its performance significantly lags that of its international peers. AMP Capital’s Nader Naeimi says overseas markets offer better opportunities for investors at present, while James Pomeroy of HSBC forecasts that emerging markets will become a major driver of global economic growth.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, HSBC BANK PLC, NIKKEI 225 INDEX, STOXX EUROPE 600 INDEX, DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, EURO STOXX 50 INDEX, MSCI EMERGING MARKETS INDEX, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS

Global shares still look best for capital growth

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 28 : 10-Oct-17

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 has gained 1.3 per cent so far in 2017, compared with an 8.2 per cent gain for the MSCI All Country World index in Australian dollar terms. Most analysts expect global equities to continue to outperform Australian stocks in the near-term, although Richard Coppleson of Bell Potter remains upbeat about the outlook for the local market. He notes that investors are likely to reinvest some of the $A23.7bn worth of dividends that have been paid in recent weeks.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MSCI ALL COUNTRY WORLD INDEX, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Tension hits world merger activity

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Original article by Cliona O’Dowd
The Australian – Page: 28 : 10-Oct-17

A new report shows that mergers and acquisitions activity in the Asia-Pacific region, excluding Japan, has fallen by 7.8 per cent so far in 2017. M&A activity in the region declined by 10.9 per cent in the September quarter, to $US157.8bn. There were some $A674bn worth of deals globally during the quarter, or 3,772 transactions in total. Macquarie Group advised on $US22.65bn worth of M&A deals in Australasia.

CORPORATES
MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, LATTICE SEMICONDUCTOR, UNITED TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION, ROCKWELL COLLINS INCORPORATED, BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO PLC, RJ REYNOLDS TOBACCO COMPANY

Get ready for a lost decade for shares

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Original article by Philip Baker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 32 : 5-Oct-17

The key US sharemarket indices are trading at record highs, while Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is now trading slightly below its level at the start of 2017. At 5,652 points, the local bourse remains well below its record high of 6,828 on 1 November 2007. Independent investment analyst Boris Pogos notes that there have been a number of other periods during which the Australian sharemarket has delivered a negative return over 10 years or more, and these trends suggest that the all-time record high may not be breached until at least 2020.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, RUSSELL 2000 INDEX, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, RAMSAY HEALTH CARE LIMITED – ASX RHC, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Citi tips ‘attractive’ return on stocks

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 35 : 6-Sep-17

Data from Citigroup shows that the earnings of Australian-listed companies increased by 17.8 per cent in 2016-17, although growth was just 4.3 per cent when resources stocks are excluded. Earnings are forecast to rise by 3.4 per cent overall in 2017-18, although Tony Brennan of Citigroup notes that growth could be around 10 per cent when dividends are taken into account. Meanwhile, UBS expects earnings growth of 3.5 per cent overall. Citigroup also forecasts that the S&P/ASX 200 could potentially rise by 12 per cent in 2017-18.

CORPORATES
CITIGROUP PTY LTD, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, SUNCORP GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUN, PRIMARY HEALTH CARE LIMITED – ASX PRY, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, COMPUTERSHARE LIMITED – ASX CPU, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX

Kim’s bomb the bleak balance for the upbeat

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Original article by Vesna Poljak
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 4-Sep-17

Shane Oliver of AMP Capital says there is potential for equity markets to experience a correction, although this could depend on the response to North Korea’s test of a hydrogen bomb. Meanwhile, Oliver says profit growth in Australia remains significantly lower than in the US, Europe and Japan. He anticipates GDP growth of 0.5 per cent for the quarter and 1.5 per cent growth year-on-year. A survey by Bloomberg shows that the general consensus is for GDP growth of 0.7 per cent for the quarter and 1.8 per cent for the year to June.

CORPORATES
AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, BETASHARES CAPITAL LIMITED, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

‘Don’t throw away growth for dividends’

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Original article by Andrew White, David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 28 : 31-Aug-17

Data from Credit Suisse shows that 60 per cent that have a 30 June balance data increased their dividend payout in the August 2017 reporting season, while 31 per cent reduced their dividends. Perennial Value Management MD John Murray has welcomed the decision of some companies to increase their capital expenditure rather than returns to shareholders. Wilson Asset Management chairman Geoff Wilson notes that the increase in capex during the current reporting season is the strongest since 2007.

CORPORATES
PERENNIAL VALUE MANAGEMENT LIMITED, WILSON ASSET MANAGEMENT, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX, NUFARM LIMITED – ASX NUF, SKYCITY ENTERTAINMENT GROUP LIMITED – ASX SKC, AMCOR LIMITED – ASX AMC, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, APA GROUP – ASX APA

Investors take cover from Kim’s missile over Japan

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 24 : 30-Aug-17

Sharemarkets in the Asia-Pacific region retreated on 29 August, after North Korea fired a missile over Japan’s main islands. Futures pricing suggests that the S&P 500 will also fall as geopolitical tensions on the Korean peninsula increase. Meanwhile, the yield on 10-year US Treasuries reached a two-month low and the gold price peaked at a nine-month high of $US1,322.41 an ounce. Sue Trinh of RBC says financial markets’ initial response to the latest missile test was "relatively shallow" and short-lived.

CORPORATES
RBC CAPITAL MARKETS, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, KOSPI INDEX, NIKKEI 225 INDEX, HANG SENG INDEX, SHANGHAI COMPOSITE INDEX, JAPAN. OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT, UNITED NATIONS. SECURITY COUNCIL, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF STATE, NOMURA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, BLACKMORES LIMITED – ASX BKL, CALTEX AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CTX, REGIS RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX RRL, RETAIL FOOD GROUP LIMITED – ASX RFG, MANTRA GROUP LIMITED – ASX MTR, DOWNER EDI LIMITED – ASX DOW, SPEEDCAST INTERNATIONAL LIMITED – ASX SDA, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD