BUSINESS FORECASTING – AUSTRALIA

Heavyweight miners predict little respite

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Original article by Perry Williams
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 22 : 4-Jan-16

Former Rio Tinto CEO Leigh Clifford says commodity prices may not rebound for another 3-5 years, and mining companies with high production costs in particular face challenging conditions. Former Orica chairman Malcolm Broomhead says action is needed to boost labour productivity, and he has urged the Australian Government to pursue reforms in areas such as industrial relations and taxation in order to boost productivity.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, ORICA LIMITED – ASX ORI, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, ASCIANO LIMITED – ASX AIO, KKR AND COMPANY LP

Advertising revenue predicted to hit $13.5b

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 12 : 4-Jan-16

ZenithOptimedia forecasts that Australian advertising revenue will rise by three per cent in 2016, to $A13.5bn. Digital advertising revenue is expected to grow by 12.1 per cent to almost $A6bn, while outdoor advertising revenue will increase by 8.9 per cent to $A716 million. However, ZenithOptimedia anticipates 0.6 per cent growth in TV advertising revenue, while a sharp decline in newspaper and magazine advertising revenue is expected.

CORPORATES
ZENITH OPTIMEDIA

Farmers applaud subsidy cut but say it’s just a start

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Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 22-Dec-15

New South Wales wheat, barley and canola farmer John Booker has welcomed the World Trade Organization’s decision to abolish agricultural export subsidies. He does not expect to benefit immediately from the decision, but he is optimistic about the long-term gains. Tony Mahar of the National Farmers Federation argues that the domestic support subsidies that some countries provide to farmers must also be scrapped.

CORPORATES
WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION, NATIONAL FARMERS’ FEDERATION LIMITED, CATTLE COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN DAIRY INDUSTRY COUNCIL

Star Wars box office sales in hyperdrive, headed for $100m

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Original article by Primrose Riordan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 21-Dec-15

Village Roadshow CEO Kirk Edwards says "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" could overtake "Avatar" as the highest-grossing film on record in Australia. The new Star Wars film’s local box-office takings exceeded $A25m on the weekend of 19-20 December 2015, and Edwards expects it to gross at least $A100m overall. It is estimated that the film’s global ticket sales have exceeded $US250m ($A348m) to date.

CORPORATES
VILLAGE ROADSHOW LIMITED – ASX VRL, RENTRAK CORPORATION, WALT DISNEY COMPANY

Woodside cuts spending, lifts production guidance

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 18-Dec-15

Woodside Petroleum has advised that its total production for 2015 will be within the range of 91 million to 93 million barrels of oil equivalent. Its previous forecast was 88 million to 93 million boe. The oil and gas group has also indicated that capital expenditure for the calendar year will be $US100m lower than previously forecast, and its exploration budget has been cut by $US70m. Woodside’s shares closed 0.85 per cent lower at $A26.82 on 17 December.

CORPORATES
WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH, APACHE ENERGY LIMITED, CHEVRON CORPORATION

Stanmore Coal on track to reopen mothballed mine

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 19 : 18-Dec-15

Nick Jorss, the MD of Australian-listed Stanmore Coal, is confident that the Isaac Plains mine in Queensland will be profitable despite the downturn in the coking coal price. Stanmore will employ about 150 people at the mine, which it bought from Vale and Sumitomo for just $A1 earlier in 2015. The company has targeted April 2016 to commence production.

CORPORATES
STANMORE COAL LIMITED – ASX SMR, VALE SA, SUMITOMO CORPORATION, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, FELIX RESOURCES LIMITED, YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, EXCEL COAL LIMITED, PEABODY ENERGY CORPORATION

BHP should slash dividend by half: analyst

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Original article by James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 17-Dec-15

Paul McTaggart of Credit Suisse says BHP Billiton should drop its commitment to a progressive dividend policy and reduce its annual payment of $US1.24 per share by 50 per cent. Credit Suisse recently downgraded its earnings forecasts for BHP in both 2015-16 and 2016-17, and McTaggart says the lower earnings outlook means BHP cannot afford to keep its dividend payout at the current level.

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED

Domino’s soars on European deals

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 17-Dec-15

Australian-listed Domino’s Pizza Enterprises now expects 30 per cent growth in its 2016 underlying EBITDA and net profits. The group had only recently upgraded its earnings guidance to 25 per cent growth. It will also acquire German pizza chain Joey’s via a joint venture with UK-based Domino’s Pizza Group. Meanwhile, Domino’s Pizza Enterprises has secured long-term extensions to its master franchise rights to the Domino’s brand in several European countries.

CORPORATES
DOMINO’S PIZZA ENTERPRISES LIMITED – ASX DMP, DOMINO’S PIZZA GROUP PLC, DOMINO’S PIZZA INCORPORATED, JOEY’S PIZZA, PLATYPUS ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, PIZZA SPRINT

Latest Star Wars movie to break Australia’s box office records

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Original article by Dominic White, Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 17-Dec-15

Hoyts Cinemas CEO Damian Keogh says the new "Star Wars" film could potentially be the highest-grossing film in Australia of all time. More than $A15m worth of tickets for "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" were sold prior to its cinema debut, and Keogh says the film’s total box office takings could exceed $A100m. "Avatar" holds the Australian box office record, with its takings exceeding $A115m.

CORPORATES
HOYTS CINEMAS LIMITED, VILLAGE ROADSHOW LIMITED – ASX VRL, WALT DISNEY COMPANY, LUCASFILM

Apartment crunch tipped for two cities

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Original article by Robert Harley
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 33 : 16-Dec-15

A new report from the Commonwealth Bank warns of a looming apartment glut in the Melbourne and Brisbane CBDs from 2016, when a large number of apartment projects are slated for completion. The CommBank Property Insights report notes that about 80,000 apartments are under construction in Australia’s major capital cities, while an additional 117,000 have been proposed.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA