STRATEGIC PLANNING – AUSTRALIA

Seven cuts dividend to focus on debt

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 21-Feb-18

Seven West Media has posted a 2017-18 interim underlying net profit of $A100.7m, which is 5.2 per cent higher than previously. EBITDA was up 3.5 per cent at $A176.8m, but revenue fell 10.4 per cent to $A809.4m. The media group reduced its costs by $A13.8m during the first half, and it aims to cut costs by $A40m over the full year. CEO Tim Worner says dividends have been put on hold to enable Seven to reduce its debt and capitalise on potential merger opportunities in the wake of the federal government’s cross-media ownership reforms.

CORPORATES
SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, YAHOO!7 COMMUNICATIONS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG

IAG profit jumps 24pc, as insurer mulls Asian exit

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 21 : 15-Feb-18

Insurance Australia Group has posted a 2017-18 interim net profit of $A551m, which is 24 per cent higher than previously. The insurer has written down the value of its Asian assets by $A50m, and indicated that it could potentially exit the region. Meanwhile, CEO Peter Harmer says the company took action to remedy problems with its "add-on" car insurance business well before the financial services commission commenced, and opted to withdraw from this sector of the market.

CORPORATES
INSURANCE AUSTRALIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX IAG, SWANN INSURANCE (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, NRMA LIMITED, CGU INSURANCE AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INCORPORATED

Upbeat Miller sets digital course

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Original article by Darren Davidson
The Australian – Page: 24 & 26 : 12-Feb-18

News Corp Australia boasted 389,600 digital subscribers at the end of the December 2017 quarter, an increase of 26 per cent year-on-year. Executive chairman Michael Miller describes digital subscriptions as a "huge opportunity" for the media group, noting that this market is recording annual growth of 20 per cent. Millers adds that the merger between Foxtel and Fox Sports is progressing, while he also says News Corp is open to mergers and acquisitions, including free-to-air TV networks.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN REGIONAL MEDIA, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Alinta’s plan to rattle AGL and Origin

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Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 23 : 16-Jan-18

Alinta believes that its purchase of Victoria’s Loy Yang B coal-fired power station for around $A1.2 billion can help it boost customer numbers. Alinta MD Jeff Dimery notes that it has around 800,000 to 900,000 customers at the moment, and that it is capable of coping with around two million customers. He says Alinta is still committed to expanding its renewable energy generation capacity, despite its purchase of Loy Yang B.

CORPORATES
ALINTA ENERGY (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, ENGIE SA, AGL ENERGY LIMITED – ASX AGL, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, ENERGYAUSTRALIA PTY LTD, CHOW TAI FOOK ENTERPRISES LIMITED, ECOGEN ENERGY, IFM INVESTORS PTY LTD

Rinehart’s Roy Hill to lift output

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: 14 : 9-Jan-18

Roy Hill Holdings is seeking to lift its iron ore export capacity at Port Hedland to 60 million tonnes a year. The company reached its annual production target of 55 million tonnes in September 2017, less than two years after shipments from its namesake mine began. Roy Hill says the increased production can be achieved without investing in additional infrastructure. Meanwhile, a Federal Government report has forecast strong growth in Australia’s iron ore exports in 2018 and a fall in the price of the steel input.

CORPORATES
ROY HILL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF WATER AND ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG

Failed BP deal won’t hit Woolworths’ refit plans

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 15-Dec-17

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission has blocked the sale of Woolworths’ fuel business to BP on the grounds that it would likely push up petrol prices and reduce competition. Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci said he was disappointed by the ACCC’s decision. Woolworths was due to receive $A1.8 billion if the transaction had gone ahead, with some of the funds expected to be used on an upgrade of Woolworths’ supermarkets. Banducci said the ACCC’s decision should not impact on any refurbishment program.

CORPORATES
WOOLWORTHS GROUP LIMITED – ASX WOW, BP AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, SHERPA, YELLO, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AIRTASKER PTY LTD, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED

ANZ life sale could pave way for buybacks

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Original article by Alice Uribe, Joyce Moullakis, Sarah Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 & 21 : 13-Dec-17

CEO Shayne Elliott concedes that the ANZ Bank’s earnings will be lower following recent asset sales, although he believes that refocusing the group is in the best interests of shareholders. ANZ shares closed 1.1 per cent higher at $A28.82 on 12 December after it announced the sale of its life insurance division to Zurich for $A2.85bn. ANZ had sold the OnePath business to IOOF Holdings earlier in 2017. Elliott has indicated that ANZ could potentially use the proceeds of the latest deal to finance a share buyback.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, ZURICH FINANCIAL SERVICES AUSTRALIA LIMITED, ZURICH INSURANCE COMPANY, ONEPATH AUSTRALIA LIMITED, IOOF HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX IFL, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, SHAW AND PARTNERS LIMITED

ASX will share blockchain system savings

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 8-Dec-17

Stock exchanger operator ASX Limited expects to achieve significant cost savings by phasing out its CHESS settlement and clearing system for equities in favour of one based on blockchain technology. Financial market experts say the shift to distributed ledger technology developed by Digital Asset Holdings will increase the sharemarket’s transparency, and have welcomed the ASX’s announcement that some its cost savings will be passed on to market participants. The ASX could potentially deploy blockchain technology for other markets.

CORPORATES
ASX LIMITED – ASX ASX, DIGITAL ASSET HOLDINGS LLC, STOCKBROKERS AND FINANCIAL ADVISERS ASSOCIATION LIMITED, NORTHERN TRUST COMPANY, DIGITALX LIMITED – ASX DCC, EUROZ SECURITIES LIMITED, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NCC GROUP, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, JP MORGAN AND COMPANY INCORPORATED

Santos places Narrabri gas back in frame

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Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 10-Nov-17

Santos has advised that the Narrabri coal-seam gas project is among three growth options for the listed oil and gas producer. The $A3.6bn project had been declared a non-core asset in 2016, but Santos has advised that it is now one of six core assets. MD Kevin Gallagher says the Narrabri project has become viable given concerns about domestic gas supply and prices, although he adds that it may take until late 2018 or early 2019 to secure environmental approval from the New South Wales government. Santos is also considering an expansion of the Papua New Guinea LNG plant and development of the Caldita-Barossa field in the Timor Sea.

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, EASTERN STAR GAS LIMITED, NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS, CONOCOPHILLIPS, EXXONMOBIL CORPORATION, OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH

Fortescue looks to new horizons

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 20 : 9-Nov-17

More than 90 per cent of Fortescue Metals Group’s iron ore is exported to China. However, outgoing CEO Nev Power has flagged plans to lift the volume of exports to other nations in response to Chinese steel mills’ growing demand for higher-grade iron ore. Fortescue already ships some iron ore to the UK and Germany, and Power says it aims to build on this, as well as seeking other export markets in Asia. Power has also advised that Fortescue will undertake a feasibility study on its Eliwana deposit at the Western Hub in the Pilbara.

CORPORATES
FORTESCUE METALS GROUP LIMITED – ASX FMG, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY