1.8 million older Australians have a comorbidity condition putting them at a higher risk from COVID-19

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 29-Apr-20

Latest Roy Morgan data shows more than 1.8 million Australians aged 70+ (65%) have an existing serious health issue such as high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, high cholesterol, an irregular heartbeat or heart disease. The New York Department of Health mortality statistics shows those with one of these serious health conditions have a higher risk of dying from COVID-19 coronavirus if they catch it.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence increases for fourth straight week, up 0.8pts to 85.0

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 29-Apr-20

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence rose 1% to 85.0 in the week to 26 April, although the gain was much smaller than over the prior three weeks. Now 19% (down 1ppt) of Australians say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year, while 40% (down 1ppt) say their families are ‘worse off’ financially. Meanwhile, 30% (down 6ppts) of Australians expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, and 22% (down 2ppts) expect to be ‘worse off’ financially. However, just 6% (up 1ppt) expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months, while 48% (down 6ppts) expect ‘bad times’. In addition, 25% (down 3ppts) of Australians say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items, while 38% (down 9ppts) say now is a ‘bad time to buy’. The four-week moving average for ‘inflation expectations’ fell 0.1ppt to 3.7%. The weekly reading bumped to 3.6% from 3.1%.

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

L-NP support jumps as Australia responds well to COVID-19 pandemic

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 29-Apr-20

In the last month support for the L-NP has jumped 4.5% and recovered from a poor response to the summer bushfires, according to the latest Roy Morgan Poll. L-NP 51.5% now leads the ALP 48.5% on a two-party preferred basis following Government’s successful response to COVID-19 with now only a handful of new cases being announced. L-NP support is now significantly higher than their February low of only 45% when voters were not impressed by Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his Government’s handling of the bushfires.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN LIMITED, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

News Corp on the prowl for job cuts and efficiencies to survive corona crisis

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Original article by Rod Myer
The New Daily – Page: Online : 28-Apr-20

News Corp has engaged Deloitte to undertake a review of the media company’s Australian operations as it seeks to respond to the impact of COVID-19. It is understood that the review will focus on reviewing and cutting print costs, and centralising editorial and commercial functions. Measures already announced by News in response to COVID-19 include stopping the printing of around 60 community newspapers, while it has indicated that the virus will have a "material adverse impact" on its revenues.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED

More time to enrol in JobKeeper scheme

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Original article by Maja Garaca Djurdjevic
My Business – Page: Online : 28-Apr-20

More than 400,000 businesses have formally applied for the JobKeeper scheme to date, covering some 2.4 million employees. The Australian Taxation Office has advised that the deadline for applying for the initial phase of the wage subsidy scheme will be extended from 30 April to the end of May. Kate Carnell, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, has urged small businesses that may be eligible to apply for the scheme as soon as possible.

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AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE

Virus-plagued NAB seeks $3.5bn

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Original article by Richard Gluyas
The Australian – Page: 13 & 17 : 28-Apr-20

National Australia Bank has posted a 2019-20 interim net profit of $1.3bn, compared with $2.7bn previously. Loan impairments rose to $1.2bn due to a sharp increase in provisions due to the coronavirus, while NAB has reduced its interim dividend from $0.83 per share to just $0.30. NAB shares were suspended from trading on 27 April pending a $3.5bn capital raising, which comprises a $3bn institutional placement and a $500m share purchase plan. Meanwhile, NAB is bearish about the outlook for the economy and unemployment in the near-term.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Wider impact of virus crisis becoming clearer

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Original article by Robert Gottliebsen
The Australian – Page: 21 : 28-Apr-20

Roy Morgan has revealed that 10.5 million Australians have had their employment circumstances changed by the impact of COVID-19. This includes 3.8 million people who have had their work hours cut, while 670,000 people have been made redundant. Roy Morgan found that three-quarters of sole traders have been impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, but that 46 per cent of people who work for entities with over 1,000 employees have not had their employment affected in some manner by the crisis. Agriculture, transport and storage, and wholesale trade are among the sectors least impacted by the crisis, according to Roy Morgan.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED

Inflation to rise ahead of plunge

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 28-Apr-20

The travel and accommodation sector is likely to be among the hardest hit when inflation data for the March quarter is released on 29 April. The inflation figures will reflect the impact of the bushfires and the early stages of the coronavirus crisis. The market consensus is for a headline inflation rate of 1.9 per cent for the year to March, while the Commonwealth Bank has forecast that inflation will reach two per cent for the first time since mid-2018. However, economists generally expect a negative inflation rate in the June quarter, a view shared by Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Budget updates to push growth agenda

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 28-Apr-20

The federal government will release a statement on the impact of the coronavirus on the domestic economy when parliament resumes in May. Amongst other things, it will outline how much the government has spent on stimulus measures to date. The Coalition also intends to release new economic forecasts in June, which take into account the likely future impact of the pandemic. Labor and former Treasury official Greg Smith have previously urged the government to release an economic update in the near-term, arguing that it is too long to wait until the Budget in October.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Google MD caught off-guard by moving media goalposts

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Original article by Paul Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 & 22 : 28-Apr-20

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission will implement a mandatory revenue-sharing code of conduct for digital companies by July, after the federal government scrapped plans for a voluntary code. Google’s Australian MD Melanie Silva has rejected claims that it was "dragging its feet" in negotiations for a voluntary code, and that it will co-operate fully with the ACCC in developing the mandatory code. It has been suggested that news publishers could receive hundreds of millions of dollars in extra revenue under the code.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, GOOGLE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED