K: Financial and Insurance Services

Westpac refunds $20m over credit card transaction fees

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Original article by Clancy Yeates
The Age – Page: 21 : 9-Sep-16

Some 820,000 credit card customers of Westpac will be reimbursed after being charged foreign transaction fees on purchases via offshore merchants that were made in Australian dollars. The banking major has issued about $A20m worth of refunds after the Australian Securities & Investments Commission found that it had neglected to inform customers that such transactions would attract a so-called "foreign transaction fee". Westpac has also updated its terms and conditions.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION

Shareholders to reap $24b in dividends

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 9-Sep-16

CommSec’s Craig James estimates that shareholders of Australian-listed companies will receive $A16.3bn worth of dividend payments in the three weeks from mid-September 2016. The total payout in the wake of the August reporting season is expected to top $A24bn. Fortescue Metals Group is among the companies that have significantly increased their payout, although rivals BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto have slashed their dividends.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH SECURITIES LIMITED, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BT INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED – ASX BTT

Zero rates eould smash the banks

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 8-Sep-16

A decline in the cash rate to zero would have a negative impact on returns from Australian banking stocks. Credit Suisse analysts Jarrod Martin and James Ellis have calculated that such a scenario would trigger a fall in earnings of the major banks by an average of nine per cent or $A2.7 billion in total. Consequently, the banks would have to respond to a fall in return on equity by reducing their dividend payout ratios.

CORPORATES
CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Free kick for RBA’s new chief

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Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 19 & 27 : 7-Sep-16

Financial markets estimate that there is a 42 per cent chance that the Reserve Bank of Australia will reduce the cash rate by the end of 2016. The general consensus of economists is that rates will remain on hold until 2017, after the central bank opted against easing monetary policy on 6 September. Expectations of a strong rise in GDP growth in the June quarter will strengthen the case for leaving rates on hold. Philip Lowe will shortly succeed Glenn Stevens as Reserve Bank governor.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CLSA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, MORTGAGE CHOICE LIMITED – ASX MOC, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY

Insurance complaints spike

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Original article by Andrew White
The Australian – Page: 23 : 6-Sep-16

Australia’s Financial Ombudsman Service received 34,095 complaints from consumers in 2015-16, compared with 31,895 in 2014-15. There was a large rise in complaints about insurance products and services, which comprised 31 per cent of all complaints. The FOS resolved some 32,871 complaints during 2015-16, which is five per cent lower than previously, and this has been attributed to the rise in the number of grievances submitted to the agency.

CORPORATES
FINANCIAL OMBUDSMAN SERVICE LIMITEDAUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE AUSTRALIAN SMALL BUSINESS AND FAMILY ENTERPRISE OMBUDSMANAUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCEAUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Heady month ahead putting investors on watch for a fall

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Original article by Vanessa Desloires
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 6-Sep-16

Perpetual’s Matthew Sherwood says the Australian sharemarket could retreat in September 2016, noting that valuations and the outlook for earnings are high at present. The monetary policy meetings of central banks in the US, Japan and Europe will also be a focus for investors. Sharemarkets also often fall in September, as US traders return from the summer break. Michael Gable of Fairmont Equities says the S&P/ASX 200 could test the 5,200-point level in the near-term.

CORPORATES
PERPETUAL LIMITED – ASX PPTFAIRMONT EQUITIES PTY LTDSTANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEXUNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARDEUROPEAN CENTRAL BANKBANK OF JAPANBHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHPNATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NABAUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZCOMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBAWESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC

Savers losers as banks cut term deposit rates

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Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 21 : 6-Sep-16

Data from Deutsche Bank shows that many Australian banks have reduced their term deposit interest rates by 15-25 basis points since the Reserve Bank cut the cash rate in August 2016. However, while rates on shorter-duration term deposits have fallen, the ANZ Bank has increased its rates on one- and two-year term deposits, while all four major banks have increased their longer-term rates for new customers. Meanwhile, the interest rates on their online savings accounts have been cut by 25 basis points.

CORPORATES
DEUTSCHE BANK AGAUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZCOMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBAWESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBCNATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NABBANK OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA LIMITEDBENDIGO AND ADELAIDE BANK LIMITED – ASX BENBANK OF QUEENSLAND LIMITED – ASX BOQRESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Capex takes back seat as optimism stalls

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Original article by Vesna Poljak
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 2-Sep-16

Businesses are still reluctant to increase their capital investments. Figures released on 1 September 2016 suggest that $A105.2 billion will be spent on capital investments in 2016-17 which is unchanged in non-mining terms. Investors who rely on dividends are likely to benefit from this trend as companies will return some of their capital to them as dividends.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, NICK SCALI LIMITED – ASX NCK, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Commodity troubles weigh on ASX

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Original article by Vanessa Desloires
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 2-Sep-16

The S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 17 points, or 0.3 per, to 5,415.6 on 1 September 2016. Investor sentiment was negatively affected by the weakness in share prices in the US and a fall in oil prices due to a larger-than-expected increase in US inventories. Santos and Origin Energy both lost 3.2 per cent in value. Katana Asset Management portfolio manager Romano Sala Tenna expects crude oil prices to continue to range between $US40 ($A53) and $US50 a barrel.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, NORTHERN STAR RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX NST, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, KATANA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED

ASX ends earnings season on sour note

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Original article by Jens Meyer, Patrick Commins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 1-Sep-16

The S&P/ASX 200 index closed 0.8 per cent lower at 5,433.0 on 31 August 2016. Mining and energy stocks were out of favour. Analysts are rather disappointed with the earnings season which ended on 31 August. Goldman Sachs found only five companies whose performance was judged impressive: Fortescue, Seven Group Holdings, GWA Group, JB Hi-Fi and Mayne Pharma.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, GOLDMAN SACHS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, SEVEN GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SVW, GWA GROUP LIMITED – ASX GWA, JB HI-FI LIMITED – ASX JBH, MAYNE PHARMA GROUP LIMITED – ASX MYX, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN