K: Financial and Insurance Services

Paradice mulls responsible investor fund

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Original article by John Stensholt
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 13-Jun-17

Paradice Investment Management’s David Paradice says his company is considering setting up a number of new funds over the next year. He says they could include an emerging markets fund and an environmental, social and governance fund. Paradice, who is currently based in the US, was the recipient of an Order of Australia award as part of the 2017 Queen’s Birthday honours. He says he would like to see companies focus more on making communities better, as well as treating their staff better and reducing waste.

CORPORATES
PARADICE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO, ALPHABET INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, CLIMATE COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, SOCIAL VENTURES AUSTRALIA LIMITED, TARONGA CONSERVATION SOCIETY AUSTRALIA

All eyes on Fed’s expected interest rate rise

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 13-Jun-17

Financial market pricing indicates that the US Federal Reserve is almost certain to increase official interest rates in June 2017. Data showing that the US unemployment rate fell to a 16-year low in May will strengthen the case for a rate rise. Meanwhile, market watchers will be seeking guidance from the central bank on its plans to reduce its balance sheet, which has risen to $US4.5trn as a result of quantitative easing measures.

CORPORATES
UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, CITIBANK LIMITED, NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, APPLE INCORPORATED, ALPHABET INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, CME GROUP INCORPORATED, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS

Outlook ‘tough’ as economy slows

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 27 : 8-Jun-17

Data from Credit Suisse shows that financial markets expect the cash rate to remain on hold in the next 12 months, following the release of the latest GDP data. The economy expanded by just 0.3 per cent in the March 2017 quarter, and year-on-year growth fell to an eight-year low of 1.7 per cent. The data will cast doubt on the Reserve Bank’s forecast of calendar year economic growth of 2.5-3.5 per cent. The Commonwealth Bank notes that the central bank will be adverse to easing the cash rate, as doing so could further inflate house prices.

CORPORATES
CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, ROYAL BANK OF CANADA, GOLDMAN SACHS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, TOLL HOLDINGS LIMITED, GOODMAN GROUP – ASX GMG

Reserve takes hands off the growth lever

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 19 & 28 : 7-Jun-17

The Reserve Bank of Australia’s monetary policy statement for June 2017 notes that GDP growth is likely to have slowed in the March 2017 quarter. Paul Dales of Capital Economics says that while the central bank may be willing to overlook a temporary fall in GDP, a second successive quarter of weak GDP growth in June would be a concern for it. Dales expects the RBA to leave official interest rates unchanged at 1.5 per cent for the rest of 2017, after doing so in June.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, CAPITAL ECONOMICS LIMITED, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, BARCLAYS BANK PLC, ABERDEEN ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED

Small cap stock the winners in slow-growth local economy

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Original article by Myriam Robin
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 7-Jun-17

Victor Gomes of UBS says any economic slowdown in Australia means small-capitalisation stocks with significant offshore earnings are likely to perform well. Large-cap stocks have outperformed in recent years, and some small-caps were heavily sold down during the February 2017 reporting season. Robert Talevski of Activus Investment Advisors says investors need to focus on the long-term investment horizon when buying into small-caps.

CORPORATES
UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, ACTIVUS INVESTMENT ADVISORS PTY LTD, FORAGER FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX SMALL ORDINARIES INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 20 INDEX, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, YOWIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX YOW, GENWORTH MORTGAGE INSURANCE AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX GMA

Advice not so super for retirees

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 21 : 6-Jun-17

A new online comparison tool is intended to make it easier for superannuation fund members to assess performance data from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority. The tool will be launched by professional services firm KPMG on 6 June 2017. Meanwhile, a new report from KPMG has found that industry funds’ share of the super industry has risen to about 33 per cent since 2004, while the market share of retail funds has fallen from 43 per cent to 29 per cent.

CORPORATES
KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, CHANT WEST FINANCIAL SERVICES PTY LTD, SUPERRATINGS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIANSUPER PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Credit Suisse chief’s cautionary IPO tale

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 5-Jun-17

Some high-profile IPOs in Australia have been withdrawn in 2017, and Credit Suisse John Knox says the market needs some successful IPOs in order to boost float activity. He adds that private equity firms are unlikely to be behind the majority of IPOs in the near-term. Knox is upbeat about the outlook for mergers and acquisitions activity during the remainder of 2017, while he has welcomed a move by the Foreign Investment Review Board to provide greater clarity regarding offshore bidders.

CORPORATES
CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, OFFICEWORKS SUPERSTORES PTY LTD, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, ZIP INDUSTRIES AUSTRALIA, ALINTA ENERGY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, CHOW TAI FOOK ENTERPRISES LIMITED, ICON GROUP, QIC LIMITED, GOLDMAN SACHS PRIVATE EQUITY, PAGODA INVESTMENTS, TPG CAPITAL LP, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, DEALOGIC (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED

Slowdown is not a meltdown

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Original article by Jens Meyer
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 5-Jun-17

The Australian sharemarket fell 2.7 per cent during May 2017, compared with a 1.4 per cent gain for the S&P 500. The upcoming release of GDP data will be the next test for the market, with expectations that the economy expanded by 0.3 per cent during the March quarter and 1.6 per cent year-on-year. Weak consumer spending and doubts regarding the outlook for the housing market are key concerns for investors at present, although David Cassidy of UBS says fears about a housing market collapse are not warranted.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NIKKEI 225 INDEX, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Offshore bank investors fret over housing: Elliott

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 2-Jun-17

ANZ Bank CEO Shayne Elliott says UK investors with stakes in Australian banks are worried that recent regulatory changes to housing policy in Australia may lead to a market correction. Elliott, who was speaking at a G100 conference in Sydney, also said that comments by Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison that Australia’s large banks are "an oligopoly" were unhelpful, noting that there are other sectors in Australia that are just as concentrated as banking.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Australia ‘must deal with quite spectacular housing bubble’

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 28 : 1-Jun-17

A sharp downturn in the residential property market and an economic slowdown in China are among the biggest risks to the Australian economy, according to Willem Buiter of Citigroup. The investment bank’s global chief economist warns that the Federal Government’s plans to invest $A75bn in infrastructure over 10 years will not be sufficient to offset the impact of a property market downturn. He says the Government must take action to ensure that the housing market has a soft landing.

CORPORATES
CITIGROUP INCORPORATED, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS, BANK OF ENGLAND, WORLD BANK, EUROPEAN COMMISSION, EUROPEAN BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB