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ASB Securities Morning Brief for Tuesday, 27 July 2010
New Zealand Headlines The Reserve Bank should keep the official cash rate at 2.75 per cent, Federated Farmers says after its latest survey of farmer confidence showed only 2.9 per cent of farmers expected the economy to improve... Read more Investor activism has set the scene for a radical shake-up of the $191.2 million National Property Trust on Friday... Read more Monopoly airfares to the regions will be slashed for frequent travellers prepared to pay up to $800 a year for a new Air New Zealand loyalty card.... Read more Morrison & Co., the manager of listed investor Infratil, is among bidding groups for the 99-year lease over Port of Brisbane, a facility that has outpaced volume growth at either Sydney or Melbourne’s ports... Read more The Commerce Commission could investigate a buy-in deal between Auckland International Airport and Queenstown Airport, but a decision to overturn the agreement would be rare and could take years, a leading competition lawyer says... Read more Air New Zealand’s criticism of Auckland International Airport’s investment in Queenstown’s gateway has encouraged a local backlash against the tie-up in the alpine tourist town... Read more New Zealand credit inquiries fell 10.4% in the first six months of 2010 compared with the same period last year while defaults jumped 18.3%, says credit information company Veda Advantage... Read more Michael Hill International has lowered the value at which it transferred its intellectual property to an Australian subsidiary, resulting in changes to the transaction’s tax treatment, after concerns raised by the Australian Tax Office... Read more Former Securitibank boss John George Russell owes $138 million in back taxes and penalties, according to his lawyer... Read more Rival broadband companies have warned the Government against easing Telecom's obligations to separate its businesses.... Read more L&M Energy Ltd says it plans to drill exploration wells in two Taranaki prospects in 2011 and 2012, as well as pushing ahead on coal seam gas opportunities that underpin a share purchase scheme... Read more Retail electricity supplier Pulse Utilities will seek up to $5 million from sophisticated investors in a convertible notes issue that will lead into a proposed share purchase plan later this year... Read more Supporters of Allan Hubbard are ramping up the campaign to clear his name, lodging a complaint over what they say is a conflict of interest behind the decision to investigate the embattled businessman... Read more Adverse scenarios used to stress test banks need to have a reasonable probability, not an extreme one, says Keith Poore, head of investment strategy at Axa Global Investors... Read more The price of gold, now near nominal highs at more than US$1180 an ounce, is expected to climb further, analysts say. However, they warn New Zealand investors should be wary of exchange rate fluctuations.... Read more A giant Australian developer partly behind Canterbury's new town, Pegasus, has sold its stake to a party associated with, and well known to the other main developer Bob Robertson... Read more Allan Crafar has survived for another month against a legal challenge to kick him off his home farm... Read more Total funds under management in the retail sector have shrunk in the quarter ending June 2010, despite contributions from KiwiSaver funds which were also down, research firms say... Read more An Auckland lender which charged customers $15 for a "welcome letter" after it acquired a loan book from a rival has been fined $30,750, for breaching the Fair Trading Act.... Read more Daily Sharechat. New Zealand Oil & Gas's recent announcements have represented one step forward and two steps backwards, says Forsyth Barr analyst Andrew Harvey-Green... Read more NZ Market Report. New Zealand stocks rose for the fourth time in five sessions, amid speculation more KiwiSaver money is set to find its way into the local equity market... Read more
Australian Headlines Australian Market Report. Australian stocks rise for a second day after Wesfarmers registered better-than-expected sales performance. Banks and miners also gained... Read more Shares in QBE Insurance were crunched yesterday after it foreshadowed a 40 per cent slump in first-half profit to $US432 million ($482m)... Read more Wesfarmers' Coles supermarket chain has reported faster sales growth than larger rival Woolworths for a third consecutive quarter... Read more The Coles supermarket division may get all the attention, but Wesfarmers' other retail businesses are not doing too badly either.... Read more Furniture and electrical major Harvey Norman is the latest retailer to fall victim to the waning influence of the stimulus package.... Read more Gerry Harvey says there is little sign of inflation in the retail sector, in contrast to dire economic forecasts that an inflation surge will cause interest rates to rise next week... Read more The maker of Sunbeam kitchen appliances, GUD Holdings, posts a record full-year profit, boosted by the strong dollar and its sponsorship of MasterChef.... Read more The booming West Australian resource industry will face project delays and cost blowouts as it tries to fill 80,000 construction jobs.... Read more The Association of Mining & Exploration Companies will begin a national advertising campaign this week to pressure the federal government into taking its proposed Mineral Resources Rent Tax off the table so a more equitable solution can be achieved... Read more The election has disrupted Banpu's $2.5 billion takeover bid for Centennial Coal, prompting the Thai bidder to seek an extension to the Foreign Investment Review Board's approval period... Read more Minemakers will target ''strategic'' Asian investors to provide development funding for its Wonarah phosphate project in the Northern Territory... Read more The Chinese state-owned miner MMG says it is on the acquisition trail as its Australian arm celebrates its first birthday and starts scouting around for projects to replace its ageing mines... Read more Australia Post has ambitious plans to become a player in the multi-billion-dollar domestic superannuation industry.... Read more As he sought to avoid public questioning, investment manager for Trio Capital, Shawn Richard, outlined a litany of murder, attempted murder and threats.... Read more NSW consumers face higher electricity prices related to the proposed minerals resources rent tax and soaring coal prices... Read more Australia's budget is shrinking, even as our politicians come up with new ways to spend... Read more Cost-cutting measures introduced during the global financial crisis will boost earnings growth this profits season.... Read more The media industry is confused by a decision by internet publishers to call for tenders to supply the equivalent of website ratings.... Read more Fund manager the Australian Foundation Investment Company has welcomed the government's resource tax policy change.... Read more Australia's major law firms predict the mergers and acquisition market will stay strong in Australia... Read more Valad Property Group has lifted its funds management platform after winning the mandate for the €480 million ($700 million) Swedish Kefren Properties IX AB real estate portfolio... Read more The direct property sales market has been given a boost with the sale of Birkenhead Point, the Sydney waterfront shopping centre and marina at Drummoyne, for $174 million to the Abacus Property and Kirsh Group consortium.... Read more Chevron expects its Wheatstone gas project in Western Australia to gain environmental approval in the first quarter of 2011... Read more The ACCC will not oppose the takeover of FreightLink's Adelaide to Darwin rail business by US rail company Genesee & Wyoming... Read more ANZ and private equity fund MBK Partners plan to submit competing bids for Lone Star Funds' 51 per cent stake in Korea Exchange Bank.... Read more The tourism industry has criticised both sides of politics over plans to cut immigration numbers.... Read more Australian Foundation Investment Co will take a patient approach to investing $83 million in cash from its share purchase plan... Read more Failed Storm Financial and associated parties may have broken the law by promoting an unregistered managed investment scheme, according to ASIC... Read more Western Australia has become the nation's best-performing economy while Queensland continues to languish, according to a new survey... Read more Matthew Stevens. The retail environment in Australia is changing, with investors to re-rate Wesfarmers and long-time market leader Woolworths... Read more John Durie. Insurer QBE is struggling with falling earnings and valuations... Read more Ian Verrender. The coming federal poll is rapidly turning into a policy desert for business. In what should be dubbed ''2010 Race to the Bottom'', both major candidates to date have appeared desperate to highlight their credentials of being devoid of meaningful policy on any important issues, economic or business... Read more Adele Ferguson. It's no surprise that QBE Insurance's share price tanked after its boss, Frank O'Halloran, issued a chilling 52 per cent profit downgrade and admitted that its insurance margin would continue to collapse... Read more David Symons. Nothing irks investors more than an earnings downgrade that follows hard on the heels of a capital raising. So the murmurings of discontent emerging from institutional investors asked to support Boral's 1-for-5 rights issue earlier in the month are no surprise... Read more Stephen Bartholomeusz. The discount end of department store retailing has been hit by some well-publicised headwinds, but there's one that's so far escaped attention – the transformation of Kmart... Read more Karen Maley. The vitriolic debate over the EU's ambitious plan to phase out the bloc's unprofitable and environmentally harmful coal mines will no doubt be watched with great interest by Australia's miners... Read more Jennifer Hewett. Junior miners believe they have no choice but to fight the minerals tax... Read more Bryan Frith. Despite yet another update from the cash-strapped Photon, the company's shares remain suspended from trading... Read more
International Headlines U.S. Market Report. An updated report of the latest action on Wall Street... Read more World Market Report. An updated report of the worlds' latest market movements... Read more BP boss Tony Hayward is to leave the firm on 1 October after sustained criticism of his handling of the Gulf of Mexico oil leak - but is understood to be set for a non-executive role... Read more The biggest challenge for Robert Dudley, the American poised to replace Tony Hayward at BP, will be to ensure the London-based company’s survival in the U.S., where it’s the largest oil and gas producer... Read more New US home sales rose sharply in June compared with the previous month, but the pace of sales remains slow, figures show... Read more Japanese exports rose in June but at a slower pace than in recent months, raising questions about the strength of Japan's economic recovery... Read more The smallest profits in the commodity shipping market in 18 months may be ending as a rebound in steel and iron-ore prices signal improving Chinese demand that will ease the transport glut... Read more European Union governments imposed their toughest sanctions yet on Iran, backing U.S. efforts to force the clerical regime to halt uranium enrichment and stop any pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability... Read more Singapore Airlines made a first-quarter profit of 253 million Singapore dollars ($US184.7m) for the three months between April and June... Read more The European Commission has launched two competition inquiries to study whether IBM has abused its dominant position in mainframe computers... Read more A new U.S. law aims to ensure that smart phones are not helping fund wars in Congo and neighboring countries by requiring companies such as Apple and Intel to ensure their minerals are "conflict-free."... Read more The man in charge of recovering funds for investors duped by Ponzi mastermind Bernard Madoff has a new target: Investors who profited from Madoff's crimes.... Read more Genzyme Corp., the world’s largest maker of drugs for rare genetic diseases, rebuffed Sanofi- Aventis SA ’s takeover approach last week, two people with knowledge of the matter said today... Read more Rosneft, Russia's state oil giant, reports a jump in profit thanks to zero export duties for a key field and higher output... Read more Robert Peston. There is nothing conditional about the departure of Tony Hayward from BP, or his replacement as the company's chief executive by Bob Dudley... Read more Paul La Monica. With nearly seven months of 2010 in the can, US stocks are trading right about where they began the year... Read more
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