$1.5bn loss as Lendlease transforms

Original article by Ben Wilmot
The Australian – Page: 13 & 17 : 20-Aug-24

Property developer Lendlease has reported its latest annual results, with the company posting a headline $1.5 billion loss, which includes $1.38 billion of impairments and charges on businesses it is selling off. LendLease had announced in May that it was abandoning its global ambitions after pressure from a number of activist shareholders that included Tanarra Capital and HMC Capital, and that it would be returning around $4.5 billion in capital to Australia, where it hopes to secure projects with high returns.

CORPORATES
LENDLEASE GROUP – ASX LLC, TANARRA GROUP PTY LTD, HMC CAPITAL

Rio Tinto says all systems go for Simandou

Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 15 & 18 : 17-Jul-24

Rio Tinto has advised that the Simandou iron ore project has received final approval from the Guinean and Chinese governments. Rio Tinto is investing $US6.2bn in the development of mine, port and rail infrastructure at the Simandou project, while its share of annual production will be about 27 million tonnes. Meanwhile, Rio Tinto has indicated that a Pilbara iron ore train derailment in May affected shipments and production during the June quarter; the company shipped 158.3 million tonnes of iron ore in the first half of 2024, which will require a big increase in the second half to meet its full-year guidance of 323 to 338 million tonnes.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Aussie Broadband’s budget Buddy chases lost customers

Original article by Jenny Wiggins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 19 : 16-Jul-24

Shares in Aussie Broadband fell by 14 per cent to trade at $3.06 on Monday after the telco announced that its 2024-25 financial year earnings would be between $125 million and $135 million, some $10 million less than its previous forecast. Aussie Broadband launched a new cheap internet brand called Buddy Telco on Monday, with group MD Phillip Britt hoping it will win back some of the customers it has lost to rival Superloop after Aussie Broadband lost a wholesale contract with Origin Energy to Superloop.

CORPORATES
AUSSIE BROADBAND LIMITED – ASX ABB, SUPERLOOP LIMITED – ASX SLC, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG

Coles to expand its private label offering

Original article by Eli Greenblat
The Australian – Page: 13 & 19 : 1-May-24

Coles Group has reported that its total sales rose by 3.4 per cent to $10.03bn in the March quarter. Its supermarket division’s sales were up 5.1 per cent to $9.07bn, with sales of private label grocery products rising by 8.8 per cent to $3.1bn. In contrast, its liquor store division’s sales fell by 1.9 per cent to $786m. Coles CEO Leah Weckert says cost-of-living pressures weighed on liquor sales during the quarter, but also help boost sales of ‘home brand’ grocery products. Weckert adds that Coles is responding to the latter trend by expanding its range of private label products, including the more premium Coles Finest range.

CORPORATES
COLES GROUP LIMITED – ASX COL

Facebook shifts $1.1b offshore as local profits rise 36pc

Original article by Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 26-Apr-24

Facebook Australia’s latest accounts reveal that it paid its overseas affiliates $1.14 billion for ‘purchases of services’ in the 12 months to 31 December, up from $1.03 billion in 2022. The rise in Facebook’s ‘purchases of services’ came as its post-tax profit rose 36 per cent to $47.1 million, while the number of people working for Facebook in Australia declined by 16 per cent. Despite an broader decline in advertising, Facebook reported reported $1.34 billion from Australian advertisers in the subject year, up 6.8 per cent from $1.26 billion the year before.

CORPORATES
FACEBOOK AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Fortescue confident on export guidance

Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 16 : 25-Apr-24

Pure-play iron ore miner Fortescue has advised that its shipments from the Pilbara totalled 43.3 million tonnes in the March quarter. This was 11 per cent lower than the December quarter and down six per cent year-on-year. The lower export volumes have been attributed to the impact of a haulage train derailment during the quarter. Fortescue has conceded that full-year shipments are likely to be at the lower end of its guidance of 192-197 million tonnes. Fortescue shipped just 138.5 million tonnes in the first half of 2023-24, which will require it to ship 53.5 million tonnes in the final quarter. Meanwhile, Fortescue has further downgraded its forecast for shipments from the Iron Bridge magnetite project.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE LIMITED – ASX FMG

Rio iron exports up as Mongolia bites

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 17-Jan-24

Rio Tinto’s production report for the December quarter shows that its Pilbara mines shipped 86.25 million tonnes of iron ore in the final three months of 2023, and 338.1 million tonnes in the calendar year. The resources giant is targeting shipments of between 323 million and 338 million tonnes in 2024. Rio Tinto also advised that shipments of its benchmark ‘Pilbara blend’ product fell by five per cent year-on-year, while export volumes for its lower grade SP10 ‘fines’ were 56 per cent higher; the company expects SP10 shipments to remain high until its new mines come into production. Meanwhile, Rio Tinto says it has received a new claim for unpaid taxes by the Mongolian government regarding the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting’s $5b profit

Original article by Brad Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 1-Nov-23

Hancock Prospecting has reported an annual profit of $5.04bn for the year to 30 June, compared with $5.81bn in the previous financial year. The result was marred by lower iron ore prices, with Hancock holding controlling stakes in both Roy Hill and Atlas Iron. Hancock also receives royalties from the Hope Down iron ore mines that are operated by Rio Tinto, and which are the subject of a long-running legal dispute with Wright Prospecting. Meanwhile, Hancock has warned that Australia’s international competitiveness in the resources sector is being undermined by red tape and the amount of time it takes to get projects approved.

CORPORATES
HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, ATLAS IRON LIMITED, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Rio Tinto boosts its shipments

Original article by Glen Norris
The Australian – Page: 16 : 18-Oct-23

Rio Tinto has advised that its Pilbara iron ore shipments for the September quarter totalled 83.9 million tonnes, which is one per cent higher year-on-year. However, iron ore production was down one per cent at 83.5 million tonnes. Rio Tinto expects its iron ore shipments for calendar 2023 to be at the upper end of its initial full-year guidance of 320 to 335 million tonnes. Meanwhile, Rio Tinto’s aluminium and bauxite production rose by nine per cent and two per cent respectively year-on-year.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO

Rio beats weather, tops iron ore export record

Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 21-Apr-23

Rio Tinto has advised that its flagship Pilbara operations produced 79.2 million tonnes of iron ore during the March quarter, which is 11 per cent higher than the same period in 2022. The resources group drew upon its stockpiled iron ore to increase its shipments by 16 per cent year-on-year to 82.54 million tonnes; this eclipsed Rio Tinto’s previous first-quarter record of 80.31 million tonnes, which was set in 2018. Rio Tinto will be on track to meet its full-year export guidance of 320-335 million tonnes if this rate of shipments is sustained for the rest of the year. The first quarter of a calendar year tends to be the weakest for Australian miners, as export volumes are often disrupted by adverse weather events.

CORPORATES
RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO