The Week that Was – January 31-February 4, 2022

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We at ShareCafe understand you are busy and may not have been left with enough time to keep up with the quality content we’ve been bringing you throughout the week. To make it easier to do so, here it is in one handy location. Just click on the headline and you’ll be taken straight to the story.

 

Monday 31 January, 2022

Bad Moon Rising for Chinese Economy

Two reports show the pace of economic activity across China slowed noticeably in January ahead of the Lunar New Year break starting tomorrow and the 2022 Winter Olympics starting Friday.

 

Tuesday 1 February, 2022

Key Themes for Capital Markets in 2022

Jonathan Hubbard and Benoit Anne from MFS give us a comprehensive view of the key themes they believe will influence the macroeconomic and capital markets environment in 2022.

Trading Tidbits: ARB, BUB, CBA

A busy start to the week for the ASX saw plenty of news doing the rounds on Monday. Here are updates from ARB Corporation, Bubs Australia and the Commonwealth Bank.

Reunified BHP Already Wielding its Influence

The first day of trading in reunified BHP shares under the sole ASX listing was a reminder of where the real weight lies when it comes to the ASX 200’s diurnal ebbs and flows.

Drug Pricing and Impact Investing

The issue of drug pricing is not straightforward. The common perception of ’evil pharma’ or governments attacking innovation is unhelpful and oversimplifies a complex challenge.

WHEB’s Approach to Biodiversity

Somewhat lost among the all-encompassing threat of climate change, the decline in biodiversity is one such issue that rarely receives the attention that it deserves.

Ansell Left Unprotected Against External Forces

While lower margins had been expected by the market, the sharp cut to Ansell’s earnings forecasts – made in part because of two major disruptions to suppliers – was not.

Shortages a Gas for Origin Bottom Line

A big payoff for LNG player Origin Energy from 2021’s gas price surge thanks to shortages in Europe, China, Japan and South Korea, aided by cold winter weather in those regions.

Jan 2022 Review: There’s a bear in there

January 2022 saw the bears win a knock’em down battle with the few, remaining bulls in a surprise crunch to the first month of the new year.

 

Wednesday 2 February, 2022

No Real Shocks in Monthly Economic Data

The Reserve Bank obviously didn’t find anything to ‘scare the horses’ in yesterday’s start of the month economic data ahead of its first monetary policy meeting for the year.

Credit Not Such a Dirty Word After All

Shares in Credit Corp jumped 6% at one stage yesterday as investors enthusiastically greeted what was a solid interim result, higher dividend and upbeat outlook.

Flattening is Not Flattering

The recent flattening of yield curves is incongruous to the beginning of a hiking cycle. Janus Henderson examines the drivers of these dynamics and their expectations for 2022.

Market Murmurs: BLD, RHC

News today that Boral will return $3bn in capital to shareholders later this month, while Ramsay Healthcare announced the acquisition of UK mental health care provider Elysium.

The Implications of a Heating World

Climate change is the defining issue of our time and generation. If no action is taken to address climate change, what are the implications of a heating world for the year 2050?

RBA Keeping Calm and Carrying On

The RBA left interest rates steady and made it clear it will not be forced into lifting them by the current rise in inflation despite confirming the end of its QE campaign on Feb 10.

Investors Mutual Discuss Rising Interest Rates (video)

Investors Mutual Portfolio Manager Daniel Moore discusses with Head of Retail Wayne McGauley how the prospect of rising interest rates is affecting markets.

Alphabet Result Spells Out a Solid Future

Just as Apple did with its stellar 4th quarter results, search and video giant Alphabet (Google) has blown up the idea that tech companies have peaked as investment ideas.

AFIC Profit Up, Outperforms ASX-200 in First Half

AFIC Managing Director, Mark Freeman, discusses the LIC’s strong performance for the first half of the 2021/22 financial year and outlines what the outlook is for the future.

 

Thursday 3 February, 2022

NZ Becoming the Land of the Long Economic Cloud

New Zealand currently finds itself in the grip of high inflation, low unemployment and rising interest rates because of increasing cost pressures and still-too-high house prices.

Rising Interest Rates Change the Game

Investors Mutual’s Anton Tagliaferro takes an in-depth look at interest rates, how they are set to affect markets in 2022, and how IML is preparing their portfolios in response.

Lithium Australia Charges Circular Economy with Battery Recycling Division

While the batteries that power EVs are a potent weapon against climate change, they have their own sustainability challenges. Lithium Australia is looking to solve one of them.

Stateside Shift Suiting Amcor Superbly

December half year figures confirm packaging giant Amcor is seeing solid returns after it transplanted itself in the wake of the $US6.8 billion Bemis packaging takeover in 2019.

Chile Moves Toward Mine Nationalisation

Chile has taken the first step towards nationalising its copper and lithium mines, a move that would have huge ramifications – both good and bad – for Australian companies.

Costly Sins of the Fossil Fuel Father Bite ERA

As Energy Resources of Australia is finding out the hard way, it’s not the production and selling costs involved with mining fossil fuels that catch you in the end, it is the rehab costs.

Appearances Can Be Deceptive

2021 can be characterised as a strong year overall but with plenty of fallen angels. GAM Investments’ Mark Hawtin takes a look back at the year’s major themes.

 

Friday 4 February, 2022

Magnis Energy Technologies: Hitting Goals and Kicking Goals

After the company’s fourth material announcement in the past 3 months, Corporate Connect’s Di Brookman has released an updated research report on Magnis Energy Technologies.

Bourse Discourse: CTT, ALL

A disappointing sales report on Thursday saw shares in online retailer Cettire fall more than 20%, while poker machine giant Aristocrat suffered a setback to its expansion plans.

Global Supply Chain Bottleneck Nicks Scali

Furniture retailer Nick Scali has warned investors that persistently high international shipping costs will likely cut earnings in the current second half of the of the June 30 financial year.

Oz Economy Strong Offshore but Weak Locally

More evidence of the two-faced nature of the Australian economy, with a robust trade account being offset by weak domestic conditions, particularly in housing approvals.

Margin Squeeze Forces Westpac’s Hand on Cost-Cutting

Rising pressures on profit margins and the prospect of more to come has forced Westpac to bring forward by two years the bank’s long-promised target date for lower costs.

The Metaverse: The Next Wave of Digital Innovation?

From Gucci bags to aeroplanes, the Metaverse has sparked a wave of innovation. GAM Investments’ Mark Hawtin looks at the opportunities within a market predicted to be worth USD 1 trillion.

Everything Clicking for REA Group

The latest half year figures from News Corp’s digital house listings arm REA Group has confirmed that it’s the middlemen that make a lot of money – and not just the banks.