The ASX 200 is down 10 points in mid-morning trade after mixed leads and limited news. Oil and Materials +ve, REITS, h’care wosrt. FXL new sign-ons, AOG update, quiet datawise but ECB & US GDP and earnings in focus #ausbiz
TODAY
Nothing on the agenda
COMPANY NEWS
- Flexigroup (FXL) – humm retailer update. New retailers – Temple & Webster, Bing Lee, Betta Electrical, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Jaycar, Sunboost, and 1300 SMILES; Retailers are favouring humm’s differentiated offering, broader demographic and spending power, with 2,000 seller locations added since May, taking the total to 15,000 partners; Higher value sales – average transaction value of $3,760 with its ‘big things’ wallet and over $400 for ‘little things’ online – nearly double that of other BNPL payment types; In the month following the relaunch of flexigroup’s BNPL product as humm in Australia the total number of transactions increased by 22% and transaction volume grew by 16%.
- Resolute Resources (RSG)- Major upgrade in Ravenswood gold inventory net of depletion; Ravenswood Mineral Resources have increased by 24% to 5.9 million ounces of gold; Ravenswood Ore Reserves have increased by 1 million ounces, or 58%, to 2.7 million ounces of gold; Strategic and technical review of the Ravenswood Expansion Project has identified efficiency and scale improvements with potential for significantly higher throughput expected to support lower unit costs and boost economic outcomes
- Aveo (AOG) update regarding its Strategic Review process. AOG and Brookfield Property Group have continued to negotiate with a view to entering into definitive agreements leading to a Scheme of Arrangement (relating to the non-binding and conditional indicative proposal). Significant progress has been made in those negotiations. On this basis and in good faith, the Independent Board Committee (“IBC”) is continuing to engage with Brookfield
THIS WEEK
- Domestically – quiet with a couple of RBA speeches. CommBank PMIs
- Nothing in China
- Japanese PMIs and leading/coincident indices
- Europe – ECB meeting and European PMI numbers
- US – advanced reading of 2Q GDP – expectations of 1.8%. Also existing and new home sales
Corporate Calendar
- Q production reports – Oz Minerals (OZL), Iluka (ILU), Fortescue Metals Group (FMG), Newcrest Mining (NCM)
- Macquarie Bank – AGM on Thursday
- ResMed (RMD) – Q earnings on Friday
LAST WEEK
OVERNIGHT
SPI FUTURES -24
US EQUITIES – S&P500 -19 (-0.62%), Dow Jones -69 (-0.25%), NASDAQ -61 (-0.74%)
Main themes
- Expectations for sharp rate cut decrease after NY Fed clarifies yesterday’s remarks from John Williams,with expectations now centred on a 25bp cut.
EUROPEAN MARKETS – Mostly higher. STOXX600 +0.12%, UK FTSE +0.21%, German DAX +0.26%, French CAC +0.03%,
CURRENCIES
- The USD is higher at 97.07.
- The Aussie dollar is higher at US70.46
BONDS – 2-yr: +4 bps to 1.82%, 3-yr: +3 bps to 1.78%, 5-yr: +2 bps to 1.81%, 10-yr: +1 bp to 2.05%, 30-yr: +1 bp to 2.58%
COMMODITIES
- Oil – WTI futures was up US33c or 0.6% to US$55.63 a barrel on reports of UK tankers being seized by Iranian forces.
- Iron Ore – CommSec has iron ore up US$2.35 or 2% to US$121.85 a tonne.
- LME metals – Mixed. Cu +1.79%, Ni -1.68%, Al -0.08%.
ECONOMIC DATA, NEWS & POLITICS
- Fed Speak – Federal Reserve Bank of New York clarified comments made by President John Williams yesterday – saying they were not meant to imply that an aggressive rate cut will be made on July 31. President Trump tweeted that he preferred the initial interpretation of the remarks made by Mr. Williams.
- US economic data – Preliminary Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index 98.4 (consensus 98.9; prior 98.2)
- Middle East tensions – Iranian navy seized a British-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz. Another British-owned ship that was flying the Liberian flag was reportedly seized a short while later.
- ECB – Reports the ECB plans to launch another round of quantitative easing by November.
- Italian politics – President, Sergio Mattarella, asked Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini to determine in the next 48 hours if a snap election is warranted, amid continued speculation that the ruling coalition is on the verge of a collapse.
RunningMoney 