K: Financial and Insurance Services

Spanish ‘interest’ won’t derail NAB Clydesdale float

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Original article by James Chessell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 11-Sep-15

There is speculation that Spain-based Sabadell may be a potential buyer of the UK’s Clydesdale Bank, which is being sold by National Australia Bank (NAB). The Spanish bank has previously paid Stg1.7bn for TSB Bank. NAB plans to offload Clydesdale via an IPO and the sale of shares directly to its own stockholders, and NAB sources say this has not changed. CEO Andrew Thorburn indicated in August 2015 that investors would be updated on the sale process in October.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, CLYDESDALE BANK PLC, YORKSHIRE BANK PLC, BANCO SABADELL, TSB BANK LIMITED, LLOYDS BANKING GROUP PLC, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED

Citi says 55pc chance of global recession

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Original article by Karen Maley
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 22 : 11-Sep-15

A new report from Citigroup’s chief economist Willem Buiter has raised the prospect of an emerging market-driven global recession. Buiter rates the chances of a global recession in the next two years at 55 per cent, warning that if the Chinese economy goes into recession it will have a flow-on effect on other emerging market economies. He adds that the limited scope for further interest rate cuts in developed economies may require central banks to consider more stimulus measures.

CORPORATES
CITIGROUP INCORPORATED

Growth key in tighter IPO environment

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 11-Sep-15

The Australian Private Equity & Venture Capital Association’s 2015 conference has been told that conditions remain favourable for IPOs, although the market is not as strong as in 2014. Justin Ryan of Quadrant Private Equity says low interest rates will continue to make IPOs attractive to investors. Jeremy Tasker of Macquarie Group says IPO candidates that offer good earnings growth will receive support from fund managers in an environment of slowing economic growth.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN PRIVATE EQUITY AND VENTURE CAPITAL ASSOCIATION LIMITED, QUADRANT PRIVATE EQUITY PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, AVENTUS RETAIL PROPERTY FUND, GREENSTONE LIMITED, LINK GROUP PTY LTD, PETERS ICE CREAM, PACIFIC EQUITY PARTNERS PTY LTD, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, KKR AND COMPANY LP, ALLIER CAPITAL PTY LTD, ARCHER CAPITAL PTY LTD, HEALTHE CARE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Chinese investors lose $12b with Aussie’s fall

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Original article by Rose Powell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 10-Sep-15

Data shows that Chinese investors have injected some $A92.6 billion into the Australian economy over the last three years. However, the Australian dollar’s 34 per cent slump since the end of 2012 is estimated to have reduced the value of Chinese investments in the residential property market and resources groups by 30 per cent. This equates to a monetary loss of $A12bn.

CORPORATES
BASIS POINT CONSULTING, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX ALL RESOURCES INDEX

Fed urged to avoid panic with rate hike

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Original article by Jonathan Shapiro, Vesna Poljak
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 10-Sep-15

The US Federal Reserve is not expected to lift the cash rate in September 2015, with financial markets pricing in a 28 per cent chance. Kaushik Basu, chief economist at the World Bank, has expressed concern that emerging markets in particular are likely to experience an increase in volatility if the US tightens monetary policy.

CORPORATES
UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, WORLD BANK, INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK, ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT, BT INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED – ASX BTT

$A overshoots as iron ore export volumes up again

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Original article by Mark Mulligan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 10-Sep-15

The Australian dollar is trading at around $US0.70, having recently fallen to $US0.6896. However, Annette Beacher of TD Securities argues that the rebound in the iron ore price means the currency should be trading at the $US0.76 level. Meanwhile, Beacher says the Reserve Bank is likely to maintain the cash rate at two per cent in the wake of the currency’s recent downturn.

CORPORATES
TD SECURITIES, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, CAPITAL ECONOMICS LIMITED, GROUP OF TEN (G-10)

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence down 6.6pts to 106.7

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 8-Sep-15

The ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rating for Australia fell by 6.6 points to 106.7 in the week ended 6 September 2015, reaching its lowest level since July 2014. This follows three weeks where confidence remained surprisingly resilient in the face of financial market volatility, holding up above its long-run average. However, consumers clearly remain sensitive towards bad news in Australia, notably last week’s newsflow around Australia’s weak economic growth. The subindexes on economic conditions fell by 5.7 per cent and household finances fell by 4.5 per cent.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Hartzer to slim down a higher-tech Westpac

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Original article by Clancy Yeates, James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 8-Sep-15

Westpac CEO Brian Hartzer has ruled out large-scale branch closures, although he has conceded that some branches are likely to be closed as the shift toward online banking gains momentum. Hartzer has also flagged plans to increase the banking major’s investment in technology, as part of a strategy to boost overall investment by 20 per cent. Westpac will also seek to ensure that its return on equity remains above 15 per cent.

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, ST GEORGE BANK LIMITED, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, BANK OF MELBOURNE LIMITED, BANK OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Private equity to debate scarcity of assets as deals dry up

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 7-Sep-15

A dearth of quality assets contributed to a decline in the Australian private equity industry’s share of mergers and acquisitions activity in 2014-15. Australian Private Equity & Venture Capital Association figures show that the sector’s share of such deals fell to around four per cent in dollar terms during 2014-15, compared with an average of 7-10 per cent in the previous four years. Experts forecast that private equity groups will increasingly make deals in partnership with superannuation funds.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN PRIVATE EQUITY AND VENTURE CAPITAL ASSOCIATION LIMITED MINTER ELLISON ROC PARTNERS PTY LTD THE BLACKSTONE GROUP LP ORICA LIMITED – ASX ORI KKR AND COMPANY LP KOHLBERG KRAVIS ROBERTS AND COMPANY VARDE PARTNERS INCORPORATED DEUTSCHE BANK AG GE CAPITAL AUSTRALIA BRADKEN LIMITED – ASX BKN CHAMP VENTURES PTY LTD QUADRANT PRIVATE EQUITY PTY LTD

Insurers’ share prospects bleak

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Original article by Ruth Liew
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 7-Sep-15

Shares in QBE Insurance Group have risen by 13.6 per cent so far in 2015, while Insurance Australia Group has shed 20.6 per cent and Suncorp Group is down 10.2 per cent. Credit Suisse has warned that the outlook for Australian insurers is challenging, noting that the August 2015 reporting season was generally disappointing for the sector. Insurers are also facing growing competition from online rivals such as Youi and Budget Direct.

CORPORATES
QBE INSURANCE GROUP LIMITED – ASX QBE INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG SUNCORP GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUN CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED YOUI PTY LTD BUDGET DIRECT INSURANCE AGENCY PTY LTD REAL INSURANCE CITIGROUP PTY LTD UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA MEDIBANK PRIVATE LIMITED – ASX MPL