ECONOMIC INDICATORS – AUSTRALIA

Pundits expect rate cut despite jobs positivity

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 9-Jan-20

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that there was 1.6 per cent growth in job vacancies in the November quarter, in seasonally adjusted terms. Private sector job vacancies increased by 1.5 per cent, after declining in the two previous quarters. The figures also show that the number of available jobs rose to 239,400 in the year to November, compared with 235,100 in August. However, economics still expect the Reserve Bank of Australia to reduce the cash rate in February.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH SECURITIES LIMITED

High-rises spur surge in building approvals

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 9-Jan-20

New figures show that there was an 11.8 per cent increase in building approvals in November, which was the strongest monthly growth since February. Approvals for high-density housing developments increased by 21 per cent in November, for an annual growth rate of six per cent. Tom Kennedy of JP Morgan notes that building approvals data tends to be volatile, but he adds that the latest figures suggest that approvals have begun to stabilise.

CORPORATES
JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BIS OXFORD ECONOMICS PTY LTD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, URBAN TASKFORCE AUSTRALIA LIMITED, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC

Equity boom helps ASX offset fall in IPOs

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Original article by Joyce Moullakis
The Australian – Page: 13 & 18 : 8-Jan-20

The ASX’s latest activity report shows that a total of $66.3bn in capital was raised on the Australian sharemarket in 2019, compared with $98.9bn in 2018. The number of IPOs fell from 132 to just 94 in 2019, amid volatility in the global IPO market and the cancellation of several major floats on the domestic market. Meanwhile, total trades in the ASX’s cash market were 25 per cent higher in the second half of 2019 compared with the previous corresponding period, while the total on-market value traded for the half-year was nine per cent higher than previously.

CORPORATES
ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence falters on bush fires

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 8-Jan-20

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence fell 1.7% to 106.2 in the week ended 5 January, to its lowest level in more than four years. A drop in confidence at the start of the year is unusual and almost certainly reflects the impact of the catastrophic bush fires over the weekend. ‘Current economic conditions’ were down 12.9%, while ‘future economic conditions’ fell 8.1%; current economic conditions are at their lowest level since the global financial crisis, while sentiment toward the future economic outlook is at its lowest level since 1994. In contrast, ‘current finances’ rose 4%, while ‘future finances’ were up 0.3%. The ‘time to buy a household item’ sub-index gained 4.8%, recovering from a fall of 6.4% seen in the last reading of 2019. The four-week moving average of ‘inflation expectations’ was stable at 4.0%, though weekly readings saw a sharp fall, which should result in a weaker reading in the coming week.

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

New car sales plummet as families curb spending

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 2 : 7-Jan-20

Data from the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries shows that new car sales totalled 1,062,867 in 2019, which is 7.8 per cent lower than previously. Sales fell by 3.8 per cent year-on-year in December, to 84,239. FCAI CEO Tony Weber says the 2019 sales figures reflect a challenging year for the Australian economy, noting that the new car market was affected by factors such as falling house prices, low wages growth and a weaker Australian dollar. The Toyota HiLux was the top-selling vehicle for the year.

CORPORATES
FEDERAL CHAMBER OF AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRIES, TOYOTA MOTOR CREDIT CORPORATION

Australia tops LNG exports, worth $49bn

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 13 & 18 : 7-Jan-20

Data from EnergyQuest shows that Australia exported 77.5 million tonnes of LNG in 2019, overtaking Qatar as the world’s biggest exporter. Qatar had been forecast to export 75 million tonnes in 2019, although EnergyQuest notes that the Middle Eastern nation has yet to release its official export figures. The US exported 34.3 million tonnes of LNG in 2019. Meanwhile, EnergyQuest notes that Australia’s total LNG output capacity is 88 million tonnes at present.

CORPORATES
ENERGYQUEST PTY LTD, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIA. NATIONAL OFFSHORE PETROLEUM SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, EQUINOR ASA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

Cheaper power to lift big companies

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Original article by Patrick Commins
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 24-Dec-19

Analysis of data from the Australian ­Energy Market Operator shows that wholesale electricity prices in Victoria have fallen by 39 per cent year-on-year in December, and by 36 per cent in New South Wales. South Australia has recorded the smallest fall in wholesale prices, at just three per cent. Tony Wood of the Grattan Institute says electricity prices are likely to fall further in 2020 and 2021. The power costs of heavy electricity users will fall immediately, although the majority of households and small businesses are on supply contracts that are based on annual price changes.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN ENERGY MARKET OPERATOR LIMITED, GRATTAN INSTITUTE, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AGL ELECTRICITY (VICTORIA) PTY LTD, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, VICTORIA. ESSENTIAL SERVICES COMMISSION

Economy fear with credit in the doldrums

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Original article by David Rogers, Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 13 & 17 : 24-Dec-19

Data from the Reserve Bank of Australia shows that lending to businesses and property buyers increased by 0.1 per cent in November and 2.3 per cent in the year to November. This is the lowest rate of growth in private sector credit since April 2010. The figures also show that growth in home loans was 0.2 per cent in November and 2.9 per cent year-on-year, while non-housing credit fell by 0.5 per cent in November and 4.9 per cent year-on-year.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, COUNCIL OF FINANCIAL REGULATORS, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Debt down; Australians have never been richer

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 20-Dec-19

Average household wealth increased by $10,698 in the September quarter, to a record $428,573.5 per person. The Australian Bureau of Statistics data also shows that the household debt to assets ratio eased from 18.9 times to 18.5 times during the quarter, which coincided with two interest rate cuts and income tax relief. Meanwhile, the household savings rate rose from 2.7 per cent to 4.8 per cent in the three months to September, but growth in consumption fell to 0.1 per cent, compared with 0.4 per cent in the June quarter.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence down to 108.0

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 18-Dec-19

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence fell 0.9% to 108.0 in the week ended 15 December. Current financial conditions fell 1.5%, while future financial conditions gained 3.7%. Current economic conditions rose 1.6%, while future economic conditions were down 1.2%. The ‘time to buy a household item’ sub-index fell 6.4% and the four-week moving average of inflation expectations was up 0.1ppt to 4.0%.

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