Older Australians are using more drugs while more teens just say ‘no’

Original article by Rachael Eddie
The New Daily – Page: Online : 1-Jun-17

The 2016 National Drug Strategy Household Survey has revealed a two per cent increase in the number of Australians over the age of 40 using illicit drugs since 2013. The survey was undertaken by Roy Morgan Research on behalf of the Australian Institute of Health & Welfare. Julie Rae from the Australian Drug Foundation suggests thar the need to cope with stress could be one of the reasons for the increase. The survey also found that 98 per cent of teenagers have never smoked, up from 95 per cent in 2013, while the percentage of all Australians who have never smoked rose from 60 per cent in 2013 to 62 per cent in 2016.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN DRUG FOUNDATION, AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF HEALTH AND WELFARE

Confidence in property hits two-year high

Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 7 : 12-Jan-17

A survey by the ANZ Bank and the Property Council of Australia has found that confidence in the nation’s residential and commercial property markets has risen to its highest level in two years. The Property Confidence Index has risen by two points to 130 points for the March 2017 quarter, and Western Australia is the only state that has not recorded a rise in confidence. Interest rate expectations over the next 12 months have also risen significantly, particularly nationally and in New South Wales.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, PROPERTY COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

Facebook in crosshairs of metrics war

Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 23 & 25 : 12-Dec-16

The annual media CEO survey carried out by "The Australian" shows that media and advertising industry leaders agree that action is needed to address the recent audience measurement scandals at digital rivals such as Facebook. Many of the media CEOs stressed the importance of having such metrics audited by a third party, while some noted the fact that TV remains the best way to reach the largest audience.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, MULTI CHANNEL NETWORK PTY LTD, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, CARSALES.COM LIMITED – ASX CAR, REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, IPG MEDIABRANDS, OMNICOM MEDIA GROUP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, MEDIA FEDERATION OF AUSTRALIA, GROUPM COMMUNICATIONS PTY LTD, PUBLICIS MEDIA, HOYTS CINEMAS LIMITED, NOVA ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD

Property sentiment strengthens despite negatives

Original article by Robert Harley
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 41 : 13-Oct-16

The ANZ/Property Council Survey of real estate and construction industry sentiment for the third quarter of 2016 shows an improvement of two percentage points in confidence. A net 29 per cent of property and construction executives and investors are optimistic about the prospects for the property sector over the next 12 months, compared with 27 per cent in the previous quarter. An improvement in confidence occurred in all states except Queensland and South Australia.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, PROPERTY COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. INSTITUTE OF APPLIED ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH

No rate cut likely as surveys back inaction

Original article by David Uren
The Australian – Page: 2 : 4-Oct-16

The Reserve Bank of Australia is widely tipped to leave the cash rate unchanged on 4 October 2016. The findings of the Australian Industry Group’s latest manufacturing survey support the case for rates to be left on hold. It shows that business conditions improved in key sectors of the manufacturing industry during September. Other recent surveys has also been upbeat about business conditions.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, DUN AND BRADSTREET (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

Old lenders losing battle for hearts and minds

Original article by Michael Bennet
The Australian – Page: 23 : 22-Sep-16

The 2016 global consumer banking survey of professional services firm Ernst & Young shows that just 21 per cent of Australians completely trust that they will receive unbiased advice from their bank. The survey also found that 36 per cent of bank customers have complete trust in their financial institution, compared with 44 per cent of non-bank customers. Meanwhile, 37 per cent of Australian respondents do not consider the products of rival financial providers to be significantly different.

CORPORATES
ERNST AND YOUNG, PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

Millennials lead the way in social media news era

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 15-Aug-16

A survey by Deloitte has found that TV is the main source of news for 36 per cent of Australians, followed by social media (18 per cent). In contrast, 31 per cent of respondents aged 14-26 and 25 per cent of those aged 27-32 identified social media as their primary source of news, but just six per cent of baby-boomers use social media as their primary source of news. The 2016 Media Consumer Survey also shows that the number of respondents with access to Netflix, Stan and Presto has risen from 12 per cent in 2015 to 22 per cent.

CORPORATES
DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, TWITTER INCORPORATED, SNAPCHAT INCORPORATED

SMSFs head for managed funds in volatile times

Original article by Sally Patten
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 12-Aug-16

A survey by Investment Trends and Vanguard shows that 17 per cent of Australia’s self-managed superannuation funds expect to increase their exposure to managed funds in the next 12 months, compared with about 14 per cent in 2015. Meanwhile, the proportion of SMSF trustees who intend to invest in blue-chip stocks has fallen from 65 per cent to 55 per cent. There has also been a decline in investment expectations regarding exchanged traded funds and high-yield shares.

CORPORATES
INVESTMENT TRENDS PTY LTD, VANGUARD INVESTMENTS AUSTRALIA LIMITED

CFOs look on bright side

Original article by Damon Kitney
The Australian – Page: 22 : 14-Jul-16

Some 33 per cent of CFOs at S&P/ASX 200 companies are confident about the future, according to a new Deloitte survey. This compares with just five per in the second half of 2015. The survey, which was carried out in the first half of 2016, also shows that 80 per cent of respondents think that uncertainty is a deterrent to business investment. Meanwhile, nearly 45 per cent of respondents believe that it is a good time to embrace balance sheet risk. New data from Roy Morgan Research also shows that there has been an upturn in business confidence.

CORPORATES
DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED, ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL

Media agencies keen to tackle ad viewability issues, audit body research suggests

Original article by Miranda Ward
Mumbrella – Page: Online : 18-May-16

An Audited Media Association of Australia survey has found that 52 per cent of media agency professionals identified the issue of ad viewability as a priority for the industry in the next 12 months. However, this was seen as a key issue by just 36 per cent of marketing directors. Meanwhile, respondents rated Google Analytics as the most trusted metric brand, followed by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, Roy Morgan Research, Nielsen and OzTAM.

CORPORATES
AUDITED MEDIA ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, GOOGLE ANALYTICS, AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCULATIONS, ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, THE NIELSEN COMPANY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, OZTAM PTY LTD, CIRCULATIONS AUDIT BOARD OF AUSTRALIA, GFK PTY LTD