K: Financial and Insurance Services

Professional indemnity premiums likely to rise

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Original article by Ruth Liew
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 13-Jul-15

The cost of professional indemnity insurance for Australian small and medium businesses fell by 18 per cent in 2013-14, according to BizCover. Factors such as strong competition in the sector and excess insurance capacity also resulted in premiums falling by an additional two per cent in 2014-15. However, experts note the growing trend for mergers and acquisitions in the global insurance sector, which may put upward pressure on premiums.

CORPORATES
BIZCOVER PTY LTD, MORGAN STANLEY AND COMPANY INCORPORATED, ACE INSURANCE COMPANY, CHUBB CORPORATION, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG, XL GROUP, CATLIN GROUP, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY

With US rates rising, UBS bets on a 70c dollar

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 8 : 13-Jul-15

The Australian dollar reached a low of $US0.7372 in the week ended 10 July 2015. UBS Wealth Management expects it to test the $US0.70 level by the end of 2015, with global currency strategist Katherine Klingensmith citing factors such as the slowing Australian economy, the prospect of rate rises in the US and the downturn in commodity prices. BK Asset Management’s Kathy Lien adds that further interest rate cuts are likely in Australia, which would add to bearish sentiment toward the currency.

CORPORATES
UBS WEALTH MANAGEMENT, BK ASSET MANAGEMENT, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, BANK OF ENGLAND, DELTEC INTERNATIONAL GROUP

Bell Financial Group rings in strong first half

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 10-Jul-15

Australian-listed Bell Financial Group has posted an $A8m consolidated unaudited profit for the first six months of 2015. This was 300 per cent higher than its result for the same period in 2014. Group revenue was 18 per cent higher, with equity capital markets and equities execution revenue up 37 per cent and 16 per cent respectively. The group’s shares closed 11.6 per cent higher at $A0.48 on 9 July.

CORPORATES
BELL FINANCIAL GROUP LIMITED – ASX BFG, ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, CHI-X AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BELL DIRECT

nib snares World Nomads

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Original article by Tim Binsted
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 9-Jul-15

Australian-listed NIB Holdings has expanded into the travel insurance market with a $A95m deal to buy World Nomads Group. NIB MD Mark Fitzgibbon says World Nomads will complement the group’s core private health insurance business. World Nomads specialises in the distribution of travel insurance policies, and boasted normalised EBITDA of $A10m and revenue of $A117m in 2014-15.

CORPORATES
NIB HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NHF, WORLD NOMADS GROUP PTY LTD, FLIGHT CENTRE TRAVEL GROUP LIMITED – ASX FLT, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, AIRBNB INCORPORATED, TRAVEL INSURANCE DIRECT PTY LTD, SURESAVE TRAVEL INSURANCE, LONELY PLANET PUBLICATIONS PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, KING AND WOOD MALLESONS

Economists adjust bets on another rate cut

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Original article by Mark Mulligan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 31 : 9-Jul-15

The interest rate swap market has priced in an 88 per cent chance that the Reserve Bank of Australia will reduce the cash rate by 25 basis points by the end of 2015. The market now also regards a rate cut in April 2016 as a certainty. Andrew Ticehurst of Nomura Australia expects an interest rate cut in November, while Paul Dales of Capital Economics also anticipates further monetary policy easing.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, NOMURA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, CAPITAL ECONOMICS LIMITED

Aussie’s downward direction continues

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Original article by Mark Mulligan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 30 : 9-Jul-15

The Australian dollar was buying $US0.7411 late in trading on 8 July 2015, after falling to $US0.7398 in overnight trading. Factors such as the debt crisis in Greece and the Chinese sharemarket’s downturn have prompted renewed support for so-called "safe haven" currencies. This has been at the expense of commodity currencies such as the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, BK ASSET MANAGEMENT

CBA demands penalty interest

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 8-Jul-15

The Federal Court is slated to rule on a proposed class action settlement concerning Willmott Forests and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) on 23 July 2015. Some 3,500 investors have participated in the four-year class action against the fail management investment scheme operator and CBA. However, CBA has been criticised by Australian Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson for requiring class action participants to pay penalty interest rates on their loans.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WILLMOTT FORESTS LIMITED, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, BENDIGO AND ADELAIDE BANK LIMITED – ASX BEN, GREAT SOUTHERN LIMITED

RBA likely to hold as no vote drives down Aussie

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Original article by Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 7-Jul-15

The shadow board of the Reserve Bank of Australia estimates that there is a 57 per cent chance that the central bank will leave the cash rate unchanged on 7 July 2015. Shadow board chairman Timo Henckel says the economic outlook for China is a bigger issue for Australia than the debt crisis in Greece. The Australian dollar’s fall below $US0.76 in the wake of Greece’s referendum will be welcomed by the Reserve Bank.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Australian dollar dips below US75c for first time since 2009

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Original article by Mark Mulligan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 7-Jul-15

There was renewed support for "safe-haven" currencies on 6 July 2015, in response to the outcome of the referendum in Greece. The Australian dollar reached an intra-day low of $US0.7453 before rising to $US0.7504 late in trading. The debt crisis in Greece also weighed on the euro, which reached a low of $US1.09 early in Asian trading. National Australia Bank’s Ray Attrill says the euro and the Australian dollar could come under further downward pressure.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK, INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND, GREECE. MINISTRY OF FINANCE, BARCLAYS BANK PLC

ASX back on track after a scorching quarter

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Original article by Vanessa Desloires
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 25 : 7-Jul-15

Australia’s benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index shed 5.5 per cent in June 2015, which Chris Caton of BT Financial Group attributes to the debt crisis in Greece. Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank estimates that the Australian sharemarket is trading at around fair value again, with the price-earnings ratio now at 15.25 times. The market had peaked at 16.5 times earlier in 2015.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, BT FINANCIAL GROUP PTY LTD, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, SEEK LIMITED – ASX SEK, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC