EXPORTS – AUSTRALIA

Challenge to Australia’s gas dominance

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Original article by Perry Williams
The Australian – Page: Online : 4-Jun-19

Australia displaced Qatar as the world’s biggest LNG exporter in late 2018, but gas buyers say this status may be short-lived as more producers enter a competitive market. James Vigil of Japan-based JERA says LNG producers need to be competitive with regard to factors other than price, such as the terms and conditions of their supply deals and the length of their contracts. Meanwhile, Qatar plans to ramp up its LNG production, while the US has a rapidly growing LNG export trade.

CORPORATES
JERA, THE TOKYO ELECTRIC POWER COMPANY INCORPORATED, CHUBU ELECTRIC POWER COMPANY INCORPORATED, WOOD MACKENZIE, CHEVRON CORPORATION, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, EXXONMOBIL CORPORATION, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION

Record trade surplus of $4.8b thanks to iron ore

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 4-Apr-19

New figures show that Australia’s trade surplus rose to a record $4.8bn in February, well ahead of analysts’ expectations of just $3.7bn. The result was boosted by an 11 per cent increase in the value of iron ore exports. Gareth Aird of the Commonwealth Bank expects commodity prices to rise further, and that the forecasts outlined in the April 2019 Budget will prove to be too conservative. Meanwhile, services exports rose by two per cent in February, while there was a one per cent decline in rural exports.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

No conspiracy as coal delays double

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Original article by John Kehoe, Michael Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 25-Feb-19

It is now taking around 40 days for Australian coal to be cleared through five ports in northern China, up from around 25 days. The ports in question receive around eight per cent of the Australian coal exported to China, and less than two per cent of Australia’s total coal exports. Trade Minister Simon Birmingham says protection of local coal miners and environmental checks seem to be the main reasons for the delays, while he has rejected any "conspiracy theories" regarding the possible reasons for the delays.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE

China slaps ban on exports

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Original article by Perry Williams, Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 22-Feb-19

The Australian dollar fell by more than one per cent on 21 February following reports that China has imposed an indefinite ban on thermal coal exports from Australia entering five ports in northern China. Trade Minister Simon Birmingham has asked Australia’ s ambassador in Beijing, Jan Adams, to investigate the apparent ban. Australia exported around $2.1 billion worth of thermal coal to the five ports in 2018. It has been suggested that China’s action could be linked to Australia’s ban on technology company Huawei.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES COMPANY LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE LIMITED, MINERALS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

King coal now tops export earners

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 24 : 6-Feb-19

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that the nation’s minerals and energy exports rose to a record $193bn in 2018. The value of coal exports topped $66.2bn, surpassing iron ore as Australia’s biggest export earner for the first time. Mining companies benefited from a rally in thermal and coking coal prices in 2018. However, prices have since fallen, while the iron ore price has rallied in 2019.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, SOUTH32 LIMITED – ASX S32, MINERALS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

No wonder business is nervous, says Shepherd

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 2 : 22-Jan-19

Former Business Council of Australia president Tony Shepherd says the nation’s economy is solely dependent on resources exports, which in turn are dependent on global economic growth. Shepherd has also warned that Australian policymakers have become complacent after 27 years of economic growth. Meanwhile, federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says unions would be the biggest risk to the economy under Labor’s industrial relations policy.

CORPORATES
BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP

Sector booms as Asians happy to shell out for abalone

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Original article by Sue Neales
The Australian – Page: 17 : 21-Jan-19

Australian seafood exports are valued at $1.5 billion, with abalone now its second biggest seafood export. Around 4,000 tonnes of Australian abalone is exported each year, with around a quarter of abalone exports coming from abalone farms in Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania. Yumbah Aquaculture, Australia’s biggest producer of farmed abalone, is planning to construct a new $60 million farm near the Victorian town of Portland. However, the Glenelg Shire Council has received over 300 objections to the proposal.

CORPORATES
GLENELG SHIRE COUNCIL, YUMBAH AQUACULTURE

Live exports sabotaged by charity

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Original article by Rosie Lewis, Sam Buckingham-Jones
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 18-Jan-19

Animals Australia has been accused of trying to sabotage the nation’s $2 billion live export industry. This follows allegations that it offered to pay workers on ships transporting stock to the Middle East for distressing footage of animals. Liberal senator Dean Smith says the Australian Charities & Not-for-profits Commission should suspend Animals Australia’s charitable status pending an inquiry into the claims. Australian Livestock Exporters Council chairman Simon Crean says the allegations call into question Animals Australia’s role as an animal welfare advocacy group.

CORPORATES
ANIMALS AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN CHARITIES AND NOT-FOR-PROFITS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN LIVESTOCK EXPORTERS COUNCIL LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER RESOURCES, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE

Australian winemakers stockpile supplies in Europe as hard Brexit beckons

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Original article by Hans van Leeuwen
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 14-Jan-19

The prospect of a no-deal Brexit presents a big headache for the Australian wine industry. Australia is the biggest source for UK wine imports, with about 240 million litres of Australian wine exported to the UK each year. Of that, 80 per cent is sent in bulk and is bottled in the UK, with 25 per cent of that then being re-exported to the European Union. A no-deal Brexit is likely to result in delays in shipments of Australian wine from the UK as a consequence of new customs procedures. Winemakers are already stockpiling supplies in Europe, while in the longer term they may decide to choose to bottle wine in Europe or export bottled wine directly from Australia to Europe.

CORPORATES
TREASURY WINE ESTATES LIMITED – ASX TWE, CASELLA WINES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN VINTAGE LIMITED – ASX AVG, THE YALUMBA WINE COMPANY, ACCOLADE WINES LIMITED

Soaring LNG shipments yield $43.3b in exports

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 14-Jan-19

Australian exports of liquefied natural gas rose by 23 per cent to 69.5 million tonnes in 2018, according to Energy Quest, with revenue from LNG exports increasing by an estimated 68 per cent to around $43.3 billion. The rise in 2018 exports was aided by new projects starting up in north-western Australia, with further increases in exports expected in 2019. The Woodside Petroleum-managed North West Shelf venture retained its position as Australia’s top LNG exporter in 2018, shipping around 17.28 million tonnes.

CORPORATES
ENERGYQUEST PTY LTD, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, CHEVRON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SHELL COMPANY OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED