K64 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services

Calling a truce in the fund war

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 3-Jul-17

The issue of active versus passive fund managers attracts considerable debate in Australia. However, BetaShares MD Alex Vynokur argues that the focus for fund managers should be on acting in the best interests of clients rather than the merits of each investment strategy. He notes that many active funds charge high fees while failing to deliver strong returns. BetaShares’ exchange-traded funds feature low fees and have a proven track record for good returns.

CORPORATES
BETASHARES CAPITAL LIMITED, BETASHARES FTSE RAFI AUSTRALIA 200 ETF – ASX QOZ, S&P DOW JONES INDICES LLP

Domestic woes to weigh on stocks

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Original article by Myriam Robin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 30-Jun-17

Australia’s S&P/ ASX200 index has gained 10.8 per cent in 2016-17, with resources stocks generally performing well while defensive stocks have disappointed. JP Morgan Asset Management’s Kerry Craig notes that some stocks have failed to match their first-half performance in the second half of the financial year. He adds that sector-specific issues and the Australian economy are likely to weigh on the sharemarket in 2017-18.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, JP MORGAN ASSET MANAGEMENT INCORPORATED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, THE A2 MILK COMPANY LIMITED – ASX A2M, BLUESCOPE STEEL LIMITED – ASX BSL, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, BELLAMY’S AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX BAL, DEUTSCHE BANK AG

Tech boom still has long way to run, says disruption fund

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Original article by James Frost
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 34 : 27-Jun-17

Evans & Partners’ executive chairman David Evans says digital disruption will affect sectors such as banking, insurance, health and retailing. Evans & Partners aims to capitalise on this with the launch of a global disruption fund, which will invest in US technology stocks such as Apple and Netflix, as well as Chinese technology stocks. The new fund will have an annual fee of 128 basis points and aims to initially raise $A100m from investors.

CORPORATES
EVANS AND PARTNERS PTY LTD, APPLE INCORPORATED, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, ACTIVISION BLIZZARD INCORPORATED, ALIBABA GROUP HOLDING LIMITED, BAIDU.COM INCORPORATED, TENCENT HOLDINGS LIMITED, NETEASE.COM INCORPORATED, ALPHABET INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, MICROSOFT CORPORATION, ZILLOW.COM, PAYPAL INCORPORATED, MASTERCARD INTERNATIONAL INCORPORATED, VISA INTERNATIONAL, MAGELLAN ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, GOLDMAN SACHS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, CARSALES.COM LIMITED – ASX CAR, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, SEEK LIMITED – ASX SEK, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES

Super bodies want wider ban on commissions

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Original article by Alice Uribe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 27-Jun-17

The Department of the Treasury is conducting a review of Australia’s Future of Financial Advice regime. The Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees and Industry Super Australia have used a joint submission to call for the ban on up-front and trailing commissions for life insurance sold within superannuation to be extended to all life insurance sales. They contend that commission-based remuneration structures serve to put the interests of financial planners ahead of their clients.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF SUPERANNUATION TRUSTEES, INDUSTRY SUPER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION

Investors wary of copycat state bank levies

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 31 : 23-Jun-17

Shares in Australian banks rose on 22 June, although they failed to retain early gains after the South Australian Government moved to impose a levy on banks’ state liabilities. Bank stocks are likely to be sold down in the near-term amid concern that other states could seek to balance their budgets via a levy on the sector. However, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 has shed just 3.7 per cent during May and June 2017 – well below the five-year average loss of 4.4 per cent – and the local bourse traditionally performs well in July.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MSCI INCORPORATED, MSCI ASIA-PACIFIC EX-JAPAN INDEX, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED

Global investors moving ASX funds elsewhere

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Original article by Myriam Robin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 23-Jun-17

Some fund managers suggest that the Australian sharemarket’s 1.6 per cent downturn on 21 June was prompted by foreign investors shifting out of local equities. Meanwhile, Tony Brennan and Mark Tomlins of Citigroup say Asian sharemarkets may be more attractive to international investors at present, given their better prospects for earnings upgrades. Hasan Tevfik of Credit Suisse adds that passive fund managers are likely to reduce their exposure to Australian shares in coming years as the MSCI Asia-Pacific ex-Japan’s weighting toward Chinese and Hong Kong-listed shares increases.

CORPORATES
CITIGROUP PTY LTD, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, MSCI ASIA-PACIFIC EX-JAPAN INDEX, MSCI EMERGING MARKETS INDEX, MSCI INCORPORATED, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, COMPUTERSHARE LIMITED – ASX CPU, MSCI AUSTRALIA INDEX

Market jitters set off $27bn plunge

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 1 : 22-Jun-17

The Australian sharemarket shed 1.6 per cent on 21 June, extending its losses since early May to nearly five per cent. The S&P/ASX 200 typically falls in May and June, in the lead-up to the end of the financial year, and it has shed 4.4 per cent over the last two months. A move to add China’s A shares to the MSCI Emerging Markets Index weighed on sharemarkets across the Asia-Pacific region, although China’s CSI 300 Index rose 1.2 per cent.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, CSI 300 INDEX, MSCI EMERGING MARKETS INDEX, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, QBE INSURANCE GROUP LIMITED – ASX QBE, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

PE, capital flows bolster local M&A prospects

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 17 : 20-Jun-17

Data from Dealogic shows that $US44.1bn ($A57.9bn) worth of Australian mergers and acquisitions have been announced so far in 2017. This is 52 per cent higher than at the same time in 2016, and market watchers anticipate that M&A activity will remain strong in the second half of the year. Kate Towey of law firm Allens says overseas investors regard the Australian market as stable and attractive, while Alex Cartel of Deutsche Bank expects shareholder activism to have an increasing influence on the local market.

CORPORATES
DEALOGIC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, ALLENS, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, TATTS GROUP LIMITED – ASX TTS, TABCORP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TAH, ENDEAVOUR ENERGY LIMITED, ALINTA ENERGY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, KKR AND COMPANY LP, VOCUS GROUP LIMITED – ASX VOC, PLATINUM EQUITY HOLDINGS, STAPLES AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, OFFICEMAX INCORPORATED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, ELLIOTT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION, JOHNSON AND JOHNSON, ACTELION, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, WHOLE FOODS MARKET INCORPORATED, MINTER ELLISON, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD

Time running out for tax-loss selling

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Original article by Jessica Sier
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 19-Jun-17

Katana Asset Management’s Romano Sala Tenna notes that Australian investors traditionally engaged in tax-loss selling in the final week of June. However, he says investors are increasingly selling underperforming stocks well before the end of the financial year. Quantitative analysis shows that stock which experience a sharp sell-off in May and June typically rebound over the first few months of the new fiscal year. Stocks that have been subject to tax-loss selling in 2017 include Mayne Pharma, APN Outdoor Group and Harvey Norman.

CORPORATES
KATANA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED, MAYNE PHARMA GROUP LIMITED – ASX MYX, APN OUTDOOR GROUP LIMITED – ASX APO, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, SUPER RETAIL GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUL, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, SPOTLESS GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SPO, SLATER AND GORDON LIMITED – ASX SGH, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE

IPO tale: more floats, less cash

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Original article by Scott Murdoch
The Australian – Page: 20 : 19-Jun-17

A total of 137 companies listed on the Australian sharemarket during the first five months of 2017, compared with 113 for the same period in 2016. However, the total value of initial capital raised has fallen from $A22.6bn to just $A13.67bn, and the total value of secondary capital raised has fallen from $A43.5bn to $A35.5bn. Simon Poidevin of Bell Potter anticipates an upturn in secondary capital raisings in the new financial year as companies seek growth via acquisitions.

CORPORATES
BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, BINGO INDUSTRIES LIMITED – ASX BIN, OFFICEWORKS SUPERSTORES PTY LTD, ZIP INDUSTRIES AUSTRALIA, CRAVEABLE BRANDS LIMITED, RED ROOSTER FOODS, OPORTO PTY LTD, KELLY PARTNERS GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX KPG, NUTRANO PRODUCE GROUP, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX