Australia & NZ Archives - Page 22 of 96

July 7, 2017

Australia faces headwinds

Australian wage rate growth, on the other hand, is declining. is in a worse position, with a dramatic fall in investment following the mining boom.

Australia: Wage Price Index

Source: RBA & ABS

As is inflation.

Australia: Inflation

Source: RBA & ABS

Growth in Household Disposable Income and Consumption.

Australia: Household Income and Consumption

Source: RBA & ABS

And Banks return on shareholders equity.

Australia: Banks Return on Equity

Source: RBA & APRA

But not Housing.

Australia: Banks Return on Equity

Source: RBA, ABS, APM, CoreLogic & Residex

At least not yet.

Falling house prices would complete the feedback loop, shrinking household incomes, consumption and banks ROE.

July 7, 2017

ASX 200: Banks run into strong resistance

Iron ore peaked at $60. Expect a sharp fall to test support between $50 and $52, typical of a bear market. Chinese housing price growth — a key driver of iron ore prices as illustrated last week — is slowing and likely to drag ore prices lower.

Iron Ore

The ASX 300 Metals & Mining index is still on the up but likely to respect resistance at 3000, given the reversal in iron ore. Breach of 2750 would confirm a primary down-trend.

ASX 300 Metals & Mining

The ASX 300 Banks index ran into strong resistance at 8500. Declining Twiggs Money Flow highlights selling pressure. Breach of 8000 is likely and would confirm the primary down-trend.

ASX 300 Banks

The ASX 200 displays strong selling pressure, with tall shadows on the last two weekly candles. Twiggs Money Flow dipping below zero for the second time warns of a primary down-trend. Follow-through below 5700 would test primary support at 5600. Breach of 5600 would complete a broad head and shoulders reversal, confirming a primary down-trend.

ASX 200

July 4, 2017

Surprise retail sales figures light fire under consumer stocks

From Patrick Hatch at The Age:

A surprise jump in retail sales statistics lit a fire under Australia’s beleaguered discretionary retail stocks on Tuesday, making them some of the best performing companies on the ASX’s best day of the year so far.

Gain[s] were enjoyed across the sector as JB Hi-Fi shares closed up 5.29 per cent at $24.48 and Harvey Norman rose 5 per cent to $3.99…..

Apparel and accessory sales grew 1.3 per cent, but Australian Retailers Association chief executive Russell Zimmerman said that was likely driven by heavy discounting. Department stores still took a hit in May, with turnover falling 0.7 per cent.

“We think retailers have done it very tough in clothing and footwear. So to see it rise year-on-year we think that’s retailers discounting heavily to get consumers to buy,” Mr Zimmerman said.

Source: Surprise retail sales figures light fire under consumer stocks

June 30, 2017

ASX selling pressure despite iron ore rally

Iron ore roared back, breaking resistance at $60. But this is a bear market. Also port inventories are climbing, while housing price growth is slowing. Expect another test of support at $50 is likely. Breach would signal another decline.

Iron Ore

The ASX 300 Metals & Mining index rallied off support at 2750 but is likely to respect resistance at 3000. Breach of 2750 would signal a primary down-trend.

ASX 300 Metals & Mining

The ASX 300 Banks index also rallied but is likely to respect 8500. Breach of 8000 would confirm the primary down-trend.

ASX 300 Banks

The ASX 200 displays strong selling pressure, with Twiggs Money Flow dipping below zero for the second time. Follow-through below 5700 would test primary support at 5600. Breach of 5600, while not yet a high probability, would complete a broad head and shoulders reversal.

ASX 200

June 30, 2017

Investment the key to growth

Elliot Clarke at Westpac recently highlighted the importance of investment in sustaining economic growth:

The importance of sustained investment in an economy cannot be understated. Done well, investment in real capacity begets greater production volume and employment as well as a productivity dividend. Its absence in recent years is a key factor behind sustained soft wage inflation and the US economy’s inability to consistently grow at an above-trend pace despite the economy being at full-employment and household balance sheets having more than fully recovered post GFC.

The graph below highlights declining US investment in new equipment post GFC.

S&P 500

source: Westpac

There are three factors that may influence this:

Accelerated tax depreciation allowances after the GFC encouraged companies to bring forward capital spending in order to stimulate the recovery. But the 2010 to 2012 surge is followed by a later trough when the intended capital expenditure was originally planned to have taken place.
Low growth in personal consumption, especially of non-durable goods and of services, would discourage further capital investment.

US Net Debt & Equity Issuance

The level of stock buybacks increased as companies sought alternative measures to sustain earnings (per share) growth. The graph below shows debt issuance has soared while net equity issuance remains consistently negative.

US Net Debt & Equity Issuance

source: Westpac

Net capital formation (the increase in physical assets owned by nonfinancial corporations) declined between 2015 and 2017. While this is partly attributable to the falling oil price curtailing investment in the Energy sector, continuation of the decline would spell long-term trouble for the economy.

US Net Capital Formation

The cycle becomes self-reinforcing. Low growth in personal consumption leads to low levels of capital investment ….which in turn leads to low employment growth…..leading to further low growth in personal consumption.

Major infrastructure investment is needed to break the cycle. In effect you need to “prime the pump” in order to create a new virtuous cycle, with higher investment leading to higher growth.

It is obviously important that infrastructure investment target productive assets, that generate income, else taxpayers are left with increased debt and no income to service it. Or assets that can be sold to repay the debt. But the importance of infrastructure investment should be evident to both sides of politics and any attempt to obstruct or delay this would be putting political ahead of national interests.

Australia

Australia is in a worse position, with a dramatic fall in investment following the mining boom.

Australia: Business Investment

source: RBA

If we examine the components of business investment, it is not just Engineering that has fallen. Investment in Machinery & Equipment has been declining for the last decade. And now Building Investment is also starting to slow.

Australia: Components of Business Investment

source: RBA

You’ve got to prime the pump…. You’ve got to put something in before you can get anything out.

~ Zig Ziglar

June 23, 2017

Bearish outlook for the ASX

Iron ore rallied slightly during the week. But this is a bear market. Expect resistance at $60 to hold and breach of support at $50 is likely, signaling another decline.

Iron Ore

The ASX 300 Metals & Mining index is testing support at 2750. Breach is likely and would signal a primary down-trend.

ASX 300 Metals & Mining

Banks are also under pressure, with the ASX 300 Banks index consolidating between 8000 and 8500. Breach of 8000 is likely and would confirm the primary down-trend.

ASX 300 Banks

The ASX 200 displays a broadening wedge consolidation. A failed down-swing, recovering above 5800 without reaching the lower border, would be a bullish sign. But this seems unlikely with a bearish outlook for the two largest sectors.

ASX 200

June 21, 2017

Westpac Leading Index counters jobs surge

In stark contrast to the buoyant recent ABS jobs numbers, the Westpac Leading Index slowed:

From Matthew Hassan at Westpac:

The six month annualised growth rate in the Westpac-Melbourne Institute Leading Index, which indicates the likely pace of economic activity relative to trend three to nine months into the future, eased from 1.01% in April to 0.62% in May.

…..The index is pointing to a clear slowing in momentum. While the growth rate remains comfortably above trend, the pace has eased markedly since the start of the year….

Strange week on the ASX

Strange week on the ASX, with strong jobs numbers from the ABS causing a surge in the Aussie Dollar and a more optimistic outlook on the ASX.

But Iron ore continues to fall, headed for a test of 50.

Iron Ore

The ASX 300 Metals & Mining index respected resistance at 3000 and is headed for a test of primary support at 2750. Breach would confirm the primary down-trend.

ASX 300 Metals & Mining

The ASX 300 Banks index respected resistance at 8500 and is likely to test primary support at 8000. Again, breach would confirm the primary down-trend.

ASX 300 Banks

The ASX 200 has formed a broadening wedge consolidation, in a down-trend. Declining Twiggs Money Flow indicates some selling pressure. Expect a test of primary support at 5600. Again, breach would warn of a primary down-trend. But a failed swing (that respects 5700) would warn that all bets are off and the index may be preparing for a rally.

ASX 200

June 16, 2017

Australia: Jobs surge

The May 2017 ABS Labour Force Survey surprised to the upside, with employment increasing by 42,000 over the previous month (full-time jobs even better at +52,100). These are seasonally adjusted figures and the trend estimates are more modest at 25200 jobs.

Australia Jobs and Unemployment

Seasonally adjusted hours worked also jumped, reflecting an annual increase of 2.3%.

Australia Hours Worked and Real GDP

The Australian Dollar surged as a result of the impressive numbers but Credit Suisse warns that there may be some issues with the latest strong NSW estimates:

By state, the gains in full-time employment were particularly strong in NSW…..

But beware the sample rotation bias ….the ABS has confessed that for the sixth time in seven months, it has rotated the sample in favour of higher employment-to-population cohorts. Officials report that this has had a material impact on the NSW employment outcomes.

If the numbers are correct, there are only two areas that could account for the job growth: apartment construction and infrastructure. The former is unlikely to last and the latter, while an important part of the recovery process, are also not a permanent increase.

I would prefer to wait for confirmation before adjusting my position based on a single set of numbers.

One swallow does not make a spring, nor does one day.

~ Aristotle

June 10, 2017

Australia: RBA hands tied

Falling wage rate growth suggests that we are headed for a period of low growth in employment and personal consumption.

Australia Wage Index

The impact is already evident in the Retail sector.

ASX 300 Retail

The RBA would normally intervene to stimulate investment and employment but its hands are tied. Lowering interest rates would aggravate the housing bubble. Household debt is already precariously high in relation to disposable income.

Australia: Household Debt to Disposable Income

Like Mister Micawber in David Copperfield, we are waiting in the hope that something turns up to rescue us from our predicament. It’s not a good situation to be in. If something bad turns up and the RBA is low on ammunition.

Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery. The blossom is blighted, the leaf is withered, the god of day goes down upon the dreary scene, and — and in short you are for ever floored….

~ Mr. Micawber in Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield