Record prices for Australian cattle unsustainable: Merricks

July 26, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jonathan Shapiro
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 27 : 26-Jul-16

The Eastern Young Cattle Indicator has risen to $A6.61 a kilogram. Adrian Redlich, the chief investment officer at Melbourne-based commodities hedge fund Merricks Capital, says the Australian beef price index is now at the highest level since it was set up in 1996. He advises farmers to forward sell, as prices are unlikely to stay at current levels for long.

CORPORATES
MERRICKS CAPITAL PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURAL COMPANY LIMITED – ASX AAC

Dividends back at Newcrest

July 26, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Barry FitzGerald
The Australian – Page: 21 : 26-Jul-16

Australian-listed Newcrest Mining produced 598,037 ounces of gold during the June 2016 quarter, compared with 636,521 ounces in the March quarter. Full-year output was at the lower end of its guidance of between 2.4 million and 2.6 million ounces. However, the group slashed its net debt by 27 per cent to $A2.1bn in 2015-16, prompting some analysts to forecast that it will pay a dividend for the first time since 2013.

CORPORATES
NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED

Market backs BHP’s bid to buy Anglo coal

July 25, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 25-Jul-16

BHP Billiton has declined to comment on speculation that it is poised to acquire Anglo American’s coal assets in Queensland, with the auction process nearing its end. BHP is said to be the only remaining bidder for the assets, which initially attracted interest from companies such as Glencore and Yancoal. The Anglo American assets include the Moranbah North and Grosvenor metallurgical coal mines, and some market analysts say the deal should generate significant synergies for BHP.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, ANGLO AMERICAN PLC, GLENCORE PLC, YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, AMERICAN METALS AND COAL INTERNATIONAL INCORPORATED, XCOAL ENERGY AND RESOURCES LLC, BM ALLIANCE COAL OPERATIONS PTY LTD, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED, TRIBECA GLOBAL NATURAL RESOURCES FUND, AUSTRALIAN FOUNDATION INVESTMENT COMPANY LIMITED – ASX AFI, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Growth returns to BHP but not in petroleum

July 21, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 & 22 : 21-Jul-16

BHP Billiton plans to lift iron ore, copper, coking coal and nickel production in 2016-17, after the coking coal division was the only one that increased production in 2015-16. However, the petroleum division is expected to reduce production by 13-17 per cent, after output was cut by six per cent in 2015-16. Meanwhile, iron ore shipments from BHP’s mines in Western Australia totalled 257 million tonnes in 2015-16, compared with the group’s target of 260 million tonnes. Output is slated to be within the range of 265 million to 275 million tonnes in 2016-17.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, BT INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED – ASX BTT, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED

Rio misses the mark on iron ore

July 20, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 19 & 28 : 20-Jul-16

Rio Tinto now expects its iron ore shipments from the Pilbara region of Western Australia to total 330 million tonnes in 2016, compared with previous guidance of 335 million tonnes. However, Rio has not revised its forecast for global iron ore shipments, which remains at 350 million tonnes. Meanwhile, the group has reported that iron ore shipments from the Pilbara totalled 82.2 million tonnes in the June quarter, and 159 million tonnes for the first half of the calendar year. Paul McTaggart of Credit Suisse expects Rio’s Pilbara shipments for the full year to total 328 million tonnes.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, CITIGROUP PTY LTD

Rio tipped to sell off smaller divisions

July 18, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 18-Jul-16

UBS analyst Myles Allsop suggests that Rio Tinto may seek to offload some of its non-core assets under new CEO Jean-Sebastien Jacques. Allsop says this could include its thermal coal, diamond and uranium mines, noting that they rarely receive much attention in Rio’s production reports. He also says Rio might also regard assets such as the Simandou iron ore project in Guinea as being non-core. Iron ore accounts for nearly 75 per cent of Rio’s earnings.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, MACH ENERGY, GLENCORE PLC

Moody’s issues bleak outlook for banks

July 15, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jonathan Shapiro
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 15-Jul-16

Australian banks are likely to experience pressure on their profit margins because of low interest rates. Frank Mirenzi of Moody’s states in a report released on 14 July 2016 that household debt has increased as a result of rising house prices and low income growth. At present, the big four banks have an "Aa2" rating from Moody’s and an "AA-" rating from Standard & Poor’s.

CORPORATES
MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, STANDARD AND POOR’S CORPORATION, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, HSBC BANK PLC, WELLS FARGO AND COMPANY, BNY MELLON ASSET MANAGEMENT AUSTRALIA LIMITED

It’s ore or nothing for Fortescue

July 13, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 13-Jul-16

Citigroup and UBS believe that Fortescue Metals Group will exceed its forecast for iron ore production of 165 million tonnes in 2015-16. Expectations of bullish full-year output have been heightened by data showing that shipments of iron ore from the Port of Hedland reached a record high in June. Clarke Wilkins of Citigroup estimates that Fortescue’s full-year production may have topped 168 million tonnes, while its port capacity could be up to 180 million tonnes. He suggests that there is the potential for Fortescue to use the cost savings from its debt-reduction program to increase its production to this level.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Roy Hill’s ramp-up puts pedal to the metal for Port Hedland

July 12, 2016roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Ker, Tess Ingram
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 12-Jul-16

The Roy Hill iron ore project has progressively increased the number of monthly shipments since exports began in December 2015. A spokesman for Roy Hill Holdings says 12 ships were loaded in June 2016, and the project is on track to reach full production of 55 million tonnes a year by the end of 2016. However, Macquarie Group forecast earlier in the year that the Roy Hill project will fall short of its production target, noting that achieving full production often takes a new project several years.

CORPORATES
ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, POSCO, MARUBENI CORPORATION, CHINA STEEL CORPORATION, SAMSUNG C&T CORPORATION, DURO FELGUERA SA, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, ATLAS IRON LIMITED – ASX AGO

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