Today’s Headlines

• ASX 200 finishes down after early rally falling 17 to 6178
• High 6220 Low 6177.5. Modest volume.
• Banks slip after early gains. ANZ in spotlight.
• Resources and energy turn negative.
• CSL a bright spot.
• AUD steady at 73.81c
• Bitcoin rallies to US$6301
• Gold becalmed at $1251.
• US futures down 189. Trade tariffs loom.
• Asian markets slide with Japan down 1.82% and China CSI 300 down 1.74%. Trade war fears.

STOCK STUFF

Movers and Shakers

• TLS +0.38% merges ventures business with private equity.
• BPT +0.28% proven reserves jump.
• ORE +5.03% June quarter production update
• FAR +4.76% still in the spotlight
• EBO +4.98% Chemist Warehouse (CW) win.
• FET +3.72% Childcare changes.
• YAL -unchanged- dual listing potential
• MSB +4.05% funding announcement
• HUB +3.55% bouncing back after-tax selling.
• WTC +3.07% rallying after year end sell down.
• CYB +2.84% sterling strengthens.
• SIG -40.12% nasty. Trading update and CW loss.
• AHG -8.77% refrigerated deal off.
• BLA -14.96% questions raised again.
• TTT -8.52% company secretary change.
• LVH -4.27% Appendix 3B
• AUZ +10.11% largest sample of Co and Ni Sulphate exported.
• BLX +0.66% change in substantial holding.
• CLQ +5.59% change of director’s interest.
• API -6.76% feeling Sigmas pain.
• AGO -unchanged- takeover panel rejects FMG request.
• Speculative stock of the day: Jameson Resources (JAL) +24.24% after the deal with Bathurst Resources (BRL) as a strategic partner announced Friday.

TODAY

• Yancoal Australia (YAL) – unchanged- has applied for a dual listing on the Hong Kong exchange in conjunction with the previously announced capital raising. Shareholders can participate in the capital raising on a pro-rata basis.
• Automotive Holdings (AHG) –8.77% the $200m sale of its refrigeration business to China’s HNA has been cancelled. Partly due to HNA’s liquidity issues and partly as the FIRB has not reached a decision on if it will allow it.
• GUD Holdings (GUD) –1.48% CEO and MD Jonathan Ling will step down and leave the company on September 30. He will be replaced by Graeme Whickman. Graeme has been CEO of Ford Australia and New Zealand since 2015 and worked at Ford for over 20 years.
• Village Roadshow (VRL) –1.73% is selling its Wet ‘n’ Wild Water Park in Sydney to Parques Reunidos for $40m with additional variable compensation dependant on the park’s performance up until 2020. The sale will be used to pay down debts and represent a pre-tax loss of $25m recognised in FY18 results. The transaction will be complete in 1Q FY19
• Ardent Leisure (AAD) –0.25% has undertaken Dreamworld management changes in order to implement global best practice and increase safety standards following the coronial inquest recommendations after the 2016 incident. Nicole Noye will be acting CEO of theme parks whilst the search of a permanent replacement continues, former Queensland Police Inspector Phil Tanner will be Director of Safety and Mike McKay will be Director of Culture, Community and External Relations.
• Beach Energy (BPT) +0.28% an independent audit has found increased amounts of reserves. ‘Proved’ reserves have increased by 405% to 190MMboe, ‘Proved and Probable’ reserves have increased by 320% to 313MMboe. The CEO commented that this demonstrates a clear transformation of Beach in recent years given that a third of the Proved and Probable increase was due to strong underlying performance of assets and exploration success.
• Sigma Healthcare (SIG) –40.12% has not renewed its contract with Chemist Warehouse which expires in June 2019 as negotiations of the new terms failed. This will result in $300m cash that the company says it will now use to ‘diversify and strengthen the business with a broader healthcare focus.’ They also provided a guidance update. FY19 EBIT revised to circa $75m due to softer market conditions. FY20 EBIT to be between $40-$50m. SIG ‘intends to continue to pay a high proportion of profits as fully franked dividends.’

ECONOMIC NEWS

The CBA manufacturing index rose 1.8 points to 55.0 for June. Over 50 marks expansionary territory.

• Australian dwelling values fell for the ninth consecutive month in June, taking national dwelling values 1.3% below their September 2017 peak.

• Hobart continues to show the strongest capital gain trend amongst the capital cities with dwelling values rising a further 2.3% over the past three months.  Values also trended higher across Adelaide (+0.9%), Brisbane (+0.3%) and Canberra (+0.2%) over the second quarter of 2018.
• Sydney prices fell 4.5%, after another small monthly fall in June. Melbourne too, had a fall in prices during June, but maintained a 1% rise overall for the year.

BOND MARKETS

ASIAN MARKETS

• The Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ index (PMI) declined to 51.0 in June from May’s 51.1, matching economists’ forecast.

• Confidence among Japan’s large manufacturers slipped during the second quarter.

EUROPEAN AND US HEADLINES

• FTSE expected to open 36 points lower
• “I am a real boy”. Tesla reached its milestone of building 5000 Model 3 vehicles in the final week of the quarter and in the process became “a real car company”, Elon Musk said. Took a third assembly line under a tent to do it.

• Tata Steel says 4000 jobs will be cut as a result ofr its ThyssenKrupp JV that has been announced making it Europe’s second biggest steelmaker.
• The overall level of debt for UK plc in the 2017-18 financial year far surpassed pre-crisis levels of GBP286bn, according to the Debt Monitor report published by Link Asset Services UK. The oil industry has seen the fastest growth in net debt – up 459% since the crisis.
• Trump has described the European Union as “possibly as bad as China, only smaller” when it comes trade.

And finally…………

If 4 out of 5 people suffer from diarrhoea, does that mean that one
enjoys it?_

Why if you send something by road it is called a shipment, but when
you send it by sea it is called cargo?

 

If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?_

Clarence XXX