Stocks bank on record profit

Spirits lifted in Europe and US markets higher on good economic data.

LOCAL stocks have closed higher as ANZ's $3 billion plus half-year profit took its shares to record highs and the local market along for the ride.

RBS Morgans Brisbane senior client adviser Bill Chatterton said ANZ's 11 per cent increase in its interim dividend was rewarded by investors as its shares soared a record $1.74, or 5.78 per cent, to $31.84.

"The market has been searching for yield for some time now, so for a core yield company like ANZ to come out and improve their dividend, it was really what the market wanted to listen to,'' he said.

ANZ's result also pushed up other financial stock.

National Australia Bank surged 92c to $34.00, Commonwealth Bank jumped $1.85 to $73.45, Westpac gained 68c to $33.80 and Macquarie Bank added $1.32 to $33.80.

Other high yielding stocks also performed well.

Telstra jumped 5c to $4.98 and Qantas also gained 5c to $1.90.

Even mining stocks had a positive day, after recent drops caused by falls in commodity prices.

BHP Billiton closed up 16c to $32.70 and Rio Tinto gained 44c to $55.80.

Origin Energy managed to close 3c higher to $12.32 despite extreme wet weather in Queensland contributing to a fall in quarterly revenue and production from its oil and gas fields.

However, Whitehaven Coal fell 1c to $1.95 after the miner said it was looking to find more cost savings as it battles weak coal prices and a high local currency.

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Why maths doesn't always add up at work

Bankers and accountants aren't the only ones who use maths on a daily basis, high-end blue collared workers use it the most. Picture: ThinkStock Source: Supplied

• High-end blue collared workers the biggest maths users
• Less than a quarter of workers use complex maths skills
• Clerical, sales staff use maths the least in their roles

UNLESS you work in banking or a finance-related role, chances are you wouldn't expect to use mathematics much in your day-to-day job.

So it may come as a surprise to discover the roles that actually involve the most mathematics aren't what you would expect, and less than a quarter of workers actually use maths for complex calculations.

In fact, it turns out it's not just accountants and bankers which need to know their numbers. Blue-collared workers are among the biggest users of maths in their daily jobs.

Northeastern University sociologist Michael Handel found most workers in the United States weren’t actually doing very much complicated maths at all.

He surveyed 2300 workers across two separate two-year periods - from 2004 to 2006, and again between 2007 and 2009.

His results revealed that high-skilled blue-collar workers, such as those in construction trades and mechanics, were actually the highest daily users of maths, while those in lower paid white collar roles such as clerks and sales workers used it the least.

High level white collar works, such as those in management, technical, and professional occupations were the next biggest math users.

The sociologist’s findings also suggest that high-skilled blue collar workers are also using more advanced maths skills than white-collared workers.

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First Aussie note could fetch $3.5m

The first Commonwealth of Australia banknote ever pictured here could fetch $3.5 million. Source: News Limited

AUSTRALIA'S first banknote, printed 100 years ago, is to go on sale this month for $3.5 million.

The 10 shilling note, serial Number M000001 and issued May 1, 1913, is to go on exhibit in the Hall of Honour at the World Stamp Expo in Melbourne from May 10-15 before being offered for private sale.

Coinworks, which deals in rare coins and notes and is handling the sale, said the note symbolised one of the most important periods in the history of Australia - the establishment of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901 and the subsequent evolution of nationhood.

Coinworks chief executive Belinda Downie said the note was hand numbered at a ceremony held at the Government Printing House in Melbourne.

The note was presented to Judith Denman, the five-year-old daughter of the governor general at the time, by Prime Minister Andrew Fisher and it was found in her effects after she died in 1987.

It was acquired by a private collector in Sydney for $1 million in 2000 and changed hands again in 2008 at auction for $1.9 million.
 

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Market set for stronger open

May day holiday in Europe and US markets under pressure.

THE Australian market looks set to open lower after falls on Wall Street following weak employment and manufacturing data, and as the Federal Reserve stuck to its aggressive economic stimulus program.

At 6.30am AEST today, the June share price index futures contract was down 30 points at 5131.

In economic news today, the Australian Bureau of Statistics is due to release March building approvals figures as well as international trade price indexes for the March quarter.

In equities news, APN News & Media and Hutchison Telecom have annual general meetings.

In Australia, the market yesterday closed lower, with weakness among the major miners helping snap a two-day rally.

Weaker commodities prices in offshore trade, as well as some disappointing Chinese manufacturing data prompted investors to bail out of resources-linked companies.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was DOWN 25.00 points, or 0.48 per cent, at 5166.2 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index was DOWN 24.70 points, or 0.48 per cent, to 5143.9 points.

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Sneaking an extra charge

HOUSEHOLDERS will pay between $52 and $84 extra on their electricity bill next year because of a sneaky special allowance the independent pricing regulator says is necessary to ensure competition in the power market.

The new charge will wipe out most of the government's $75-125 Family Energy Rebate.

IPART wants to institute a customer acquisition and retention cost (CARC) allowance, which it says is needed to encourage retail companies into the market.

IPART's draft determination last week would have seen a power price decrease, not an increase, except for the new allowance, consumer advocates said.

Instead, customers face an increase at the rate of inflation - about 3 per cent.

The independent pricing regulator's argument is that retailers should be allowed to charge more than it costs to supply electricity. It said this would lead to more retailers coming into the market and, eventually, lower prices.

The determination means Energy Australia customers cop a $52 a year extra cost, Origin customers in the Endeavour network area will pay $58.50 on the regulated price and Origin customers in the Essential network area will pay $84.50 extra on the average annual household bill.

At present, 40 per cent of electricity bill payers are on the "regulated retail price" - those who have not sought out other power companies than those that traditionally serve their areas - and they are the ones who will face the price allowance in its entirety.

The other 60 per cent of the market will also feel the pain because their rates are pegged to the regulated retail price.

"The level of regulated retail prices has a significant effect on the development of the competitive market," IPART found.

"If prices are set too close to the short-term efficient cost of supply, there is likely to be little to gain from participating in the competitive market."

The IPART determination sets the new allowance at $8 per kilowatt hour for Energy Australia customers for 2013-14 and 2014-15, $9 per kilowatt hour for Origin Customers in an Endeavour Network area and $13 for Origin customers in Essential areas.

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre has reacted with anger to the allowance.

"Without these costs, consumers could have been celebrating a price drop," said Carolyn Hodge, senior policy officer at the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC).

"According to IPART, a profitable retail sector will encourage competition and inevitably provide consumer protection. PIAC questions the logic of hiking prices up solely to encourage the possibility of driving them back down at some time in the future."
 

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Apple raises $US16.47bn in bond sale

Apple has named its best iPhone and iPad apps of 2012. Picture: Ken Cheung/AP Source: AP

TECHNOLOGY giant Apple has confirmed it sold $US17 billion ($16.47 billion) in bonds in the biggest corporate debt issue ever.

The bond sale, described in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, broke the record of $US16.5 billion from Roche Holding in 2009, according to the research firm Dealogic.

The debt-free Apple offered six tranches of debt, four at fixed rates and two at floating rates with the maturity between three and 30 years.

For the three-year bonds, Apple will pay a rate of 0.45 per cent, which according to Dealogic is the lowest coupon rate on record, tied with Texas Instruments, Unilever Capital and Walt Disney for comparable notes.

The bond maturities go up to 30 years, with a rate of 3.85 per cent, according to the SEC documents.

The company chose to issue debt to finance part of the $US100 billion in share buybacks and dividends it pledged to undertake through the end of 2015.

Apple had a cash pile of $US145 billion at the end of March.

But a significant part of the money is in foreign accounts and the company decided it was better to borrow than bring the money back into the US because of tax issues.

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Dollar higher on stock market gains

Australian Money Source: Supplied

THE Australian dollar is trading higher, helped along by positive sentiment from equities markets.

At 12pm AEST today, the currency was trading at 103.49 US cents, up from 103.24 US cents yesterday afternoon.

It reached a high of 103.60 US cents early this morning, its highest level since April 19.

Commonwealth Bank currency strategist Joseph Capurso said the Australian dollar had benefited from gains on stock markets and a rise in commodity prices.

"It's mainly due to offshore developments, there were gains on equity markets and a lift in the base metal prices."

Mr Capurso said trade in the local currency was likely to remain quiet during today's afternoon session.

Meanwhile, Australian bond futures prices were higher at noon. At 12pm AEST today, the June 10-year bond futures contract was trading at 96.915 (implying a yield of 3.085 per cent), up from 96.900 (3.100 per cent) yesterday afternoon. The June three-year bond futures contract was at 97.460 (2.540 per cent) up from 97.440 (2.560 per cent) previously.

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