Aeris Resources Ltd (AIS):
Junior copper play Aeris has failed in its $810 million bid to acquire Glencore’s CSA copper mine, today announcing to the market that the deal had fallen through. The offer from Aeris, lobbed late last month, was for $US575 million in a mix of cash and scrip and was hoped to boost the small copper miners annual production. Today, the board advised it had not been “to come to agreeable terms with Glencore”. “While it is disappointing that the acquisition of the CSA Mine couldn’t be completed, Aeris remains focused on its Tritton Copper Operations, the Torrens exploration project and exploring growth opportunities, both organic and through M&A,” chairman Andre Labuschagne said.
Aumake International Ltd (AU8):
Shares in daigou-focused retailer AuMake have been placed in a trading halt pending an announcement on an acquisition and related capital-raising. The company, which last month extended its bricks-and-mortar presence beyond Sydney, has requested the halt be lifted before the open of markets on Wednesday April 17, or when its anticipated announcement is released to the market. AuMake is focused on selling Australian skin care, supplements and milk formula to Chinese tourists and personal exporters, known as daigou. It has 17 stores across Sydney, Brisbane, and Auckland and is aiming for a bigger bite of the $2 billion cross-border commerce market. In February the company announced it had halved its losses after more than doubling its sales in the space of a year, with its internal sales forecast upgraded 30 to 40 per cent in March after it flagged the expansion of its stores. Shares in AuMake were worth 21 cents at the time of the halt.
Iluka Resources Limited (ILU):
Mineral sands miner Iluka Resources has reported a sharp drop in production after a major round of maintenance at one of its key operations. Perth-headquartered Iluka said it produced 197,200 tonnes of mineral sands during the March quarter, down almost 30 per cent from a year earlier and down 22 per cent from the prior quarter. The company said the fall in output had been expected given the overhaul planned for one of its synthetic rutile kilns during the quarter. Iluka’s SR2 kiln at Capel in Western Australia’s south west underwent a major maintenance outage during the quarter. The company noted that the works were completed in 45 days, ahead of the 51-day outage originally planned. Shares in Iluka were 6.5c or 0.8 per cent higher to $9.16 each after initially dropping 14 cents at the open.
National Australia Bank Ltd (NAB):
National Australia Bank has lost the support of the country's largest mortgage broking group, with its market share among borrowers seeking to refinance more than halving from 8.5 per cent to less than 4 per cent, forcing it to begin offering sweeteners to shore up support. Brokers working for Australian Finance Group claim NAB's variable interest rate hike in January, the time it is taking to approve loans, senior management shakeout and fallout from the Hayne royal commission are behind the dramatic drop in the number of loans being referred. AFG says NAB has lost market share across fixed interest, investor, homeowner and refinancing over the past 12 months. NAB disputes the concerns, claiming it is committed to its existing customers, has "strongly improved" customer retention, and is the best-performing major bank for home loan market share growth over the past 12 months.
OZ Minerals Limited (OZL):
OZ Minerals chair Rebecca McGrath has reaffirmed her confidence in the copper market at the company’s AGM, saying it was prime for low cost producers. “At the start of 2018, we saw relatively favourable global macro conditions, strong copper prices, and a market that was focused on potential supply disruptions due to labour agreement negotiations at some of the largest mines in world,” she said at the AGM in Adelaide. “The second half of 2018 then presented an unusual development with copper price positively correlating with declining market inventories. Meaning a falling copper price despite a significant tightening of the supply-demand fundamentals of the industry. “However, the long-term fundamentals of copper remain strong, and we believe it is still a market that rewards low cost producers well. “ Her comments come after the miner last week reported its Carrapateen copper and gold had reached first ore. OZL shares are trading 1 per cent higher at $10.63.
REA Group Limited (REA):
REA Group has announced the appointment of former Australia Post exec Janelle Hopkins as chief financial officer. Ms Hopkins was group chief financial officer at Australia Post since 2013, and held a number of senior finance roles at National Australia Bank and MLC before that. “We are incredibly excited to have Janelle join us at REA Group. Her knowledge of different industries and experience managing large and diverse finance teams will be a great asset to our business as we continue to grow,” chief Owen Wilson said. REA shares last at $75.97.
Suncorp Group Ltd (SUN): Suncorp has topped recent cuts by Commonwealth Bank and Westpac in an escalating fixed-rate mortgage price war by slashing discounts 45 basis points to 3.49 per cent. Its move follows Westpac matching recent cuts by CBA across popular three- to five-year fixed rates. Other lenders are expected to follow as borrowing costs fall and competition intensifies for borrowers in sluggish markets. Falling bond yields are allowing lenders to heavily cut fixed-term rates, pushing them well below the 4 per cent benchmark for cheap borrowing. Mortgage brokers say borrowers are responsive to lower rates, incentives and quick turnaround times for loan approvals. Households facing rising costs and static income are also keen to lock in low, predictable rates. Australian 10-year bond yields continue to nudge new lows of between 1.7 per cent and 1.9 per cent, and half a percentage point of interest-rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of Australia is fully priced by the futures market. Reports the AFR Telstra Corporation Ltd (TLS): Telstra is considering elevating its dispute with the City of Melbourne over JCDecaux’s upgrade of its payphone network to the Federal Court in order to head off growing unrest from councils across Australia regarding new large digital billboards being installed. Australia's largest telecommunications provider is fighting battles on multiple fronts regarding the payphone network upgrade, including a Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal action from the City of Melbourne, with councils across Australia frustrated a loophole is being used to install the panels. ources told that the telco will look to escalate the VCAT hearing to a national level so it can resolve the issues between it and local councils in one dispute rather than multiple across the country. Concerns have also been raised by a number of other councils, including those in Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane, albeit for different reasons.
（Source: AIMS）
Junior copper play Aeris has failed in its $810 million bid to acquire Glencore’s CSA copper mine, today announcing to the market that the deal had fallen through. The offer from Aeris, lobbed late last month, was for $US575 million in a mix of cash and scrip and was hoped to boost the small copper miners annual production. Today, the board advised it had not been “to come to agreeable terms with Glencore”. “While it is disappointing that the acquisition of the CSA Mine couldn’t be completed, Aeris remains focused on its Tritton Copper Operations, the Torrens exploration project and exploring growth opportunities, both organic and through M&A,” chairman Andre Labuschagne said.
Aumake International Ltd (AU8):
Shares in daigou-focused retailer AuMake have been placed in a trading halt pending an announcement on an acquisition and related capital-raising. The company, which last month extended its bricks-and-mortar presence beyond Sydney, has requested the halt be lifted before the open of markets on Wednesday April 17, or when its anticipated announcement is released to the market. AuMake is focused on selling Australian skin care, supplements and milk formula to Chinese tourists and personal exporters, known as daigou. It has 17 stores across Sydney, Brisbane, and Auckland and is aiming for a bigger bite of the $2 billion cross-border commerce market. In February the company announced it had halved its losses after more than doubling its sales in the space of a year, with its internal sales forecast upgraded 30 to 40 per cent in March after it flagged the expansion of its stores. Shares in AuMake were worth 21 cents at the time of the halt.
Iluka Resources Limited (ILU):
Mineral sands miner Iluka Resources has reported a sharp drop in production after a major round of maintenance at one of its key operations. Perth-headquartered Iluka said it produced 197,200 tonnes of mineral sands during the March quarter, down almost 30 per cent from a year earlier and down 22 per cent from the prior quarter. The company said the fall in output had been expected given the overhaul planned for one of its synthetic rutile kilns during the quarter. Iluka’s SR2 kiln at Capel in Western Australia’s south west underwent a major maintenance outage during the quarter. The company noted that the works were completed in 45 days, ahead of the 51-day outage originally planned. Shares in Iluka were 6.5c or 0.8 per cent higher to $9.16 each after initially dropping 14 cents at the open.
National Australia Bank Ltd (NAB):
National Australia Bank has lost the support of the country's largest mortgage broking group, with its market share among borrowers seeking to refinance more than halving from 8.5 per cent to less than 4 per cent, forcing it to begin offering sweeteners to shore up support. Brokers working for Australian Finance Group claim NAB's variable interest rate hike in January, the time it is taking to approve loans, senior management shakeout and fallout from the Hayne royal commission are behind the dramatic drop in the number of loans being referred. AFG says NAB has lost market share across fixed interest, investor, homeowner and refinancing over the past 12 months. NAB disputes the concerns, claiming it is committed to its existing customers, has "strongly improved" customer retention, and is the best-performing major bank for home loan market share growth over the past 12 months.
OZ Minerals Limited (OZL):
OZ Minerals chair Rebecca McGrath has reaffirmed her confidence in the copper market at the company’s AGM, saying it was prime for low cost producers. “At the start of 2018, we saw relatively favourable global macro conditions, strong copper prices, and a market that was focused on potential supply disruptions due to labour agreement negotiations at some of the largest mines in world,” she said at the AGM in Adelaide. “The second half of 2018 then presented an unusual development with copper price positively correlating with declining market inventories. Meaning a falling copper price despite a significant tightening of the supply-demand fundamentals of the industry. “However, the long-term fundamentals of copper remain strong, and we believe it is still a market that rewards low cost producers well. “ Her comments come after the miner last week reported its Carrapateen copper and gold had reached first ore. OZL shares are trading 1 per cent higher at $10.63.
REA Group Limited (REA):
REA Group has announced the appointment of former Australia Post exec Janelle Hopkins as chief financial officer. Ms Hopkins was group chief financial officer at Australia Post since 2013, and held a number of senior finance roles at National Australia Bank and MLC before that. “We are incredibly excited to have Janelle join us at REA Group. Her knowledge of different industries and experience managing large and diverse finance teams will be a great asset to our business as we continue to grow,” chief Owen Wilson said. REA shares last at $75.97.
Suncorp Group Ltd (SUN): Suncorp has topped recent cuts by Commonwealth Bank and Westpac in an escalating fixed-rate mortgage price war by slashing discounts 45 basis points to 3.49 per cent. Its move follows Westpac matching recent cuts by CBA across popular three- to five-year fixed rates. Other lenders are expected to follow as borrowing costs fall and competition intensifies for borrowers in sluggish markets. Falling bond yields are allowing lenders to heavily cut fixed-term rates, pushing them well below the 4 per cent benchmark for cheap borrowing. Mortgage brokers say borrowers are responsive to lower rates, incentives and quick turnaround times for loan approvals. Households facing rising costs and static income are also keen to lock in low, predictable rates. Australian 10-year bond yields continue to nudge new lows of between 1.7 per cent and 1.9 per cent, and half a percentage point of interest-rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of Australia is fully priced by the futures market. Reports the AFR Telstra Corporation Ltd (TLS): Telstra is considering elevating its dispute with the City of Melbourne over JCDecaux’s upgrade of its payphone network to the Federal Court in order to head off growing unrest from councils across Australia regarding new large digital billboards being installed. Australia's largest telecommunications provider is fighting battles on multiple fronts regarding the payphone network upgrade, including a Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal action from the City of Melbourne, with councils across Australia frustrated a loophole is being used to install the panels. ources told that the telco will look to escalate the VCAT hearing to a national level so it can resolve the issues between it and local councils in one dispute rather than multiple across the country. Concerns have also been raised by a number of other councils, including those in Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane, albeit for different reasons.
（Source: AIMS）
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