K: Financial and Insurance Services

Market to take cue from Hockey budget

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Original article by Sally Rose
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 11-May-15

The Australian sharemarket is tipped to take its lead from the US when trading resumes on 11 May 2015. Futures traders have priced in a 43-point rise for the S&P/ASX 200, after it shed 3.1 per cent in the previous week. Investors will be awaiting the Federal Budget on 12 May, as well as the upcoming release of wages and housing finance data.

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF AGRICULTURAL AND RESOURCE ECONOMICS AND SCIENCES, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX ALL ORDINARIES INDEX, DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S 500 INDEX, NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, BANK OF AMERICA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, BANK OF ENGLAND, CONSERVATIVE PARTY (GREAT BRITAIN), RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Cbus advised to appoint more independents

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Original article by Sally Patten
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 11-May-15

An independent report has made recommendations aimed at improving corporate governance at the Cbus superannuation fund. They include appointing more independent directors, including an independent chairman. The report, which was produced by Graeme Samuel on behalf of Cbus, also recommends measures aimed at preventing scandals such as the leaking of members’ personal information to the Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union in 2014.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING UNIONS’ SUPERANNUATION FUND, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, ACTU, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO TRADE UNION GOVERNANCE AND CORRUPTION, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION

Dividends to outgrow earnings

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Original article by Patrick Begley
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 14-Apr-15

There was five per cent growth in the dividend payouts of Australia’s 200 largest listed companies in the first half of 2014-15. In contrast, earnings increased by just two per cent. Morgan Stanley notes that the dividend payout ratio is currently 73 per cent, compared with an average of 65 per cent. However, the firm expects dividend payouts to keep growing faster than earnings, and says there is little chance of reduced dividend payouts unless earnings fall dramatically

CORPORATES
MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BT AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, COLONIAL FIRST STATE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PENGANA CAPITAL LIMITED, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX

S&P’s Blitzer worries about rates and whippersnappers

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Original article by Sally Rose
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 14-Apr-15

David Blitzer of Standard & Poor’s has warned that the sharemarket rallies in the US and Australia are not sustainable. He notes that technology stocks are most at risk of experiencing a correction. Blitzer adds that many Australian fund managers and stockbrokers have never had to cope with a recession and its potential effects on financial markets. He says this could present as big a risk to the domestic sharemarket as an increase in the cash rate

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S CORPORATION, NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD

Some see 6000, others say sell in May, go away

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Original article by John Wasiliev
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 14-Apr-15

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index fell just shy of the 6,000-point level on 13 April 2015, before drifting lower. Ric Spooner of CMC Markets expects the benchmark index to trade at around its current level in the near-term, although he notes that investors may embrace the adage of "sell in May and go away" in coming weeks. HC Securities’ Mark Lennox says the upcoming release of GDP and industrial production data from China will be the next key test for the market

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, CMC MARKETS PTY LTD, HC SECURITIES PTY LTD, IG MARKETS LIMITED, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, CHICAGO BOARD OPTIONS EXCHANGE VOLATILITY INDEX

Lowest rate since ’60s

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Original article by Stephen Cauchi
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 10-Apr-15

The Reserve Bank of Australia is widely tipped to reduce the cash rate by 25 basis points to two per cent in May 2015. The cash rate is already at its lowest level in five decades, but economists maintain that further rate cuts can help to stimulate the economy. The Commonwealth Bank’s Michael Workman notes that the low level of confidence is a key issue for the economy, while Shane Oliver of AMP Capital says there is potential for more rate cuts beyond May

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, DELOITTE ACCESS ECONOMICS PTY LTD, BANK OF AMERICA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

Harvey Norman cooking with gas as housing booms

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Original article by Madeleine Heffernan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 9-Apr-15

Australian retail sales topped $A24bn in February 2015. Sales were 0.7 per cent higher than in January, and 0.4 per cent higher than the same period in 2014. UBS is upbeat about the outlook for homewares and furniture retailer Harvey Norman, due to its exposure to the residential property market. However, UBS has "sell" recommendations on grocery groups Woolworths and Metcash

CORPORATES
HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, METCASH LIMITED – ASX MTS, INDEPENDENT GROCERS OF AUSTRALIA, COLES GROUP LIMITED, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, AUSTRALIAN BUFFALO INDUSTRY COUNCIL

Economists stumped by RBA’s moves

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Original article by Vesna Poljak, Patrick Commins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 9-Apr-15

None of the economists polled by Bloomberg News have been accurate in their forecasts for the monetary policy decisions of all three Reserve Bank of Australia board meetings so far in 2015. Several economists have, however, successfully predicted the outcome of two interest rate decisions, while five have failed to predict any. Meanwhile, the financial market’s forecasts have been right on one occasion in 2015

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, BLOOMBERG LP, BARCLAYS BANK PLC, BT FINANCIAL GROUP PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, NOMURA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS, TD SECURITIES, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, HSBC AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS PTY LTD, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, BANK OF ENGLAND, LABOUR PARTY (GREAT BRITAIN)

ANZ banks big win in class action fees battle

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Original article by Katie Walsh, Clancy Yeates
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 & 22 : 9-Apr-15

Law firm Maurice Blackburn may launch a High Court appeal against the Federal Court’s rejection of a class-action lawsuit against the ANZ Bank. The case centred on the question of whether bank fees were excessive, with more than 43,000 ANZ customers participating in the class action. Other major banks are subject to separate class actions over bank fees, with about 180,000 customers in all taking part

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, IMF BENTHAM LIMITED – ASX IMF, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, JONES DAY, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, BABCOCK AND BROWN LIMITED, KING AND WOOD MALLESONS

Beston IPO to follow lobster, dairy stakes

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Original article by Simon Evans
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 9-Apr-15

Former WorleyParsons executive Sean Ebert has become CEO of Beston Global Food Company ahead of its proposed Australian sharemarket float in July 2015. Beston has also appointed GrainCorp chairman Don Taylor and formers Santos chairman Stephen Gerlach to its board. Meanwhile, it has acquired stakes in live lobster exporter Ferguson Australia and biodynamic dairy firm B.-d. Paris Creek

CORPORATES
BESTON GLOBAL FOOD COMPANY LIMITED, FERGUSON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, B D FARM PARIS CREEK PTY LTD, GRAINCORP LIMITED – ASX GNC, WORLEYPARSONS LIMITED – ASX WOR, IOOF HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX IFL, BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, INDEPENDENT GROCERS OF AUSTRALIA, BESTON WINE INDUSTRY TRUST, CHALLENGER LIMITED – ASX CGF