INVESTMENTS

Asahi puts $16bn on bar for CUB

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Original article by Bridget Carter, Eli Greenblat
The Weekend Australian – Page: 25 & 28 : 20-Jul-19

Japan-based Asahi is set to acquire Carlton & United Breweries in a $16bn deal, subject to approval by the Foreign Investment Review Board and the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission. The deal includes beer brands such as Victoria Bitter and Carlton Draught, and is expected to be finalised in the March 2020 quarter. Asahi secured the deal after Anheuser-Busch InBev abandoned plans for an IPO of its Asian brands, including CUB. The IPO documents show that CUB had a 48.8 per cent share of the Australian market in 2018, while rival brewer Lion – which is owned by Japan’s Kirin – had a 36.4 per cent market share.

CORPORATES
CARLTON AND UNITED BREWERIES, ASAHI BREWERIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, ANHEUSER-BUSCH INBEV SA/NV, LION PTY LTD, KIRIN HOLDINGS COMPANY LIMITED

Minister cans visit after waste rebuff

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Original article by Amanda Hodge
The Australian – Page: 8 : 20-Jun-19

The future of Lynas Corporation’s rare earths processing plant in Malaysia remains uncertain after the nation’s Environment Minister Yeo Bee cancelled a trip to Australia. Yeo was scheduled to meet federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley on 19 June and Western Australian Mines Minister Bill Johnston on 20 June. Yeo advised that her visit would not proceed after Johnston indicated that the talks would be a waste of time as WA will not allow Lynas’s low-level radioactive waste to be imported from Malaysia. Ley is also of the view that disposal of the waste material is Malaysia’s responsibility.

CORPORATES
LYNAS CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX LYC, MALAYSIA. DEPT OF ENVIRONMENT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF MINES, INDUSTRY REGULATION AND SAFETY

Vocus has no regrets as turnaround proves too risky for EQT

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Original article by James Fernyhough
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 20 : 6-Jun-19

Vocus Group CEO Kevin Russell says he is not aware of any other potential takeover approaches for the telco, after EQT Infrastructure chose not to make a binding offer for the company. EQT undertook due diligence on Vocus after approaching it with a non-binding offer of $5.25 per share. The Sweden-based private equity firm’s decision to walk away from a deal prompted a sell-down of Vocus shares on 5 June, with the stock closing almost 18 per cent lower at $3.77. Russell says Vocus is making progress in its turnaround strategy.

CORPORATES
VOCUS GROUP LIMITED – ASX VOC, EQT INFRASTRUCTURE, M2 GROUP LIMITED, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, GREENCAPE CAPITAL PTY LTD

BHP faces call for write-down as Rio advances potash dream

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Original article by Peter Ker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 3-Jun-19

BHP is slated to decide within 18 months if it will commit an additional $US5.5bn to the first stage of its Jansen potash project in Canada. CEO Andrew Mackenzie recently told investors that BHP has overinvested in the project to date, and James Gurry of Deutsche Bank says it may be a good time for BHP to review the carrying value of Jansen. He adds that there is potential for an initial impairment of around $US1.2bn ($1.7bn). Meanwhile, Rio Tinto’s Albany potash joint venture in Canada could commence production within two years.

CORPORATES
BHP GROUP LIMITED – ASX BHP, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, JSC AKRON

Packer’s sale of $1.76b stake in Crown Resorts puts spotlight on Barangaroo pledge

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Original article by Nick Bonyhady, Nick Toscano
The Brisbane Times – Page: Online : 31-May-19

James Packer has sold half of his stake in Crown Resorts to Hong Kong-based Melco Resorts & Entertainment, a company with which Crown once operated a casino in Macau under a joint venture. The $1.76 billion deal was transacted via Packer’s private company Consolidated Press Holdings, and leaves Packer with around 25 per cent of Crown. However, there are suggestions that the share sale may breach the conditions of Crown’s operating licence in New South Wales; a condition of the agreement requires Crown to have no associations with Stanley Ho, the father of Melco owner Lawrence Ho.

CORPORATES
CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, MELCO RESORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

Banks bluffing on NZ lending threats: former PM

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 & 20 : 24-May-19

Former New Zealand prime minister Bill English has concerns about the Reserve Bank of NZ’s plans to require the local subsidiaries of Australia’s big four banks to increase their capital levels. S&P Global Ratings has estimated that the banks would need to raise an additional $8.1 billion, given that Australia’s four major banks have an 86 per cent share of the NZ lending market. English is worried that the move will make the banks more complacent about risk management, although he doubts that they will go ahead with threats to reduce lending in New Zealand.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF NEW ZEALAND, S&P GLOBAL RATINGS, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, STOCKBROKERS AND FINANCIAL ADVISERS ASSOCIATION LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

St Barbara confident of Atlantic gold

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Australian – Page: 20 : 16-May-19

Gold producer St Barbara will finance its proposed $768m acquisition of Canada-based Atlantic Gold via a non-renounceable rights offer and cash holdings. Paul Hissey of RBC describes Canada as a "relatively safe move" for St Barbara. Atlantic has forecast that its gold production in 2019 will be within the range of 92,000-98,000 ounces. Newcrest Mining and Northern Star Resources are among the other Australian miners to have bought North American assets in the last year.

CORPORATES
ST BARBARA LIMITED – ASX SBM, ATLANTIC GOLD CORPORATION, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, NORTHERN STAR RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX NST, ALLIED GOLD

Asians still biggest investors: Knight Frank

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Original article by Lisa Allen
The Australian – Page: 25 : 9-May-19

The federal government’s restrictions on foreign investment in residential property have not been a deterrent for Asian buyers. Liam Bailey of Knight Frank says people from China and Southeast Asia are still the biggest investors in the local residential market. The global head of research notes that a number of other countries have imposed similar restrictions on foreign investors. Bailey forecasts growth in demand for geographically diverse property investments as global wealth increases.

CORPORATES
KNIGHT FRANK, CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN

Embattled Purplebricks to quit Australian market

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Original article by Larry Schlesinger
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 8-May-19

UK-based online real estate agent Purplebricks has advised that its Australian operations will be discontinued, citing factors such as challenging market conditions. Purplebricks entered the local market in September 2016, with co-founder and global CEO Michael Bruce forecasting that the Australian business would succeed. However, its fixed-fee sales model proved to be problematic for real estate agents, particularly given the downturn in the housing market.

CORPORATES
PURPLEBRICKS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PURPLEBRICKS GROUP PLC, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Gupta to make 20,000 Aussie electric cars

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Original article by Simon Evans
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 & 18 : 30-Apr-19

British billionaire Sanjeev Gupta has indicated that GFG Alliance will announce further details of its plans to build electric cars in Australia within weeks. Gupta says the company aims to build between 10,000 and 20,000 electric cars in Australia, adding that he is of the view that the nation should be a manufacturer of such vehicles rather than just importing them. He also says the price of electric cars is likely to fall over time as more consumers embrace the technology.

CORPORATES
GFG ALLIANCE, GORDON MURRAY DESIGN, ARRIUM LIMITED, ARCELOR MITTAL SA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET