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Australian Senate slams PwC 'cover up' of tax scandal

Author

Maren Ishak
April 08, 2024

Good Morning,

This week’s overview reveals significant market shifts, including a decline in European indices after 10 weeks of gains and a slump in Japan's Nikkei amid global tensions and Fed uncertainty. Notable news includes a second arrest in a homicide case in Gisborne, NZ Post's consolidation of mail services, and a major bridge collapse in Baltimore. In investment news, attention is on restructuring at Healthscope and Armourguard's acquisition.

Let’s jump in!

Before The Bell

Markets

  • ISM services report: Continued expansion, second consecutive monthly decline, lowest prices paid since March 2020; traders hopeful for June rate cut (TRP)

  • Pan-European STOXX Europe 600 Index: Fell 1.19% after 10 consecutive weeks of gains; Hawkish Fed comments and higher oil prices raised doubts on rate cut timing. France's CAC 40 -1.76%, Germany's DAX -1.72%, Italy's FTSE MIB -2.13%, UK's FTSE 100 -0.52% (TRP)

  • Nikkei slumps 3.4%, TOPIX down 2.4% on global tensions and Fed uncertainty. Speculation on yen support; Finance Ministry prepared as yen hits 34-year low vs. USD at high-JPY 151. Yen weakness benefited Japanese exporters (TRP)

Earnings & Data

  • Hurunui ratepayers face a hefty 12.37% rates rise on average as the council invests in roading, stormwater and drainage, and Hanmer Springs. (Stuff)

News Summary

Monday

  • Police have arrested a second man in relation to the Gisborne double-homicide at the weekend. (Stuff)

  • NZ Post confirms it will merge mail and parcel deliveries. It needs to create a single delivery network to remain commercially viable as mail volumes plunge, the state-owned carrier says. But union members describe it as ‘a race to the bottom’. (NBR)

  • A major bridge in Baltimore snapped and collapsed after a container ship rammed into it on Tuesday, and several vehicles fell into the river below. Rescuers were searching for at least seven people in the water. (AFR)

Tuesday

  • Kathmandu founder Jan Cameron sentenced for failing to disclose a A$14 million shareholding in baby formula company Bellamy’s Australia. (NBR)

  • Australian Senate slams PwC ‘cover up’ of tax scandal. (NBR)

  • Vanguard has admitted to misleading conduct about its ESG screening. (NBR)

Wednesday

  • A lawyer who “clumsily” made himself the sole beneficiary of an elderly client’s entire estate, leaving the woman’s two daughters with nothing, has been ordered to stump up $22,000 for the blunder. (Herald)

  • Job losses in the public sector are "unfortunate" but the government has to ensure agencies are exercising restraint, Minister of Employment Louise Upston says. (RNZ)

  • Donald Trump is again seeking to remove the judge overseeing his upcoming New York criminal trial from the case, arguing the judge’s daughter’s work for a political consultancy with Democratic clients poses a conflict of interest. (Guardian)

Thursday

  • Merged Foodstuffs ‘could wield too much power over suppliers’ (Stuff)

  • Auckland Council employee works remotely from the Gold Coast - is this the new normal? (Stuff)

  • Oil prices rise on concerns of lower supply, signs of U.S. economic growth (RT)

Friday

  • The NZX market regulator has issued its first “trade with caution” statement in connection of Being AI Limited, which have appreciated more than 350% since listing on April 2nd. (NBR)

  • Treasury set to axe 50 jobs. (Herald)

  • Data from the Ministry of Education shows 352 building projects across 305 schools are under a 'value for money' review. (RNZ)

Weekend

  • Firefighters battling large blaze in central Auckland, one person taken into custody (Stuff)

  • Police investigated sexual assault allegation against PwC employee (AFR)

  • Strong US jobs data reinforces rate cut delay fears (AFR)

Deal Flow

Investments / M&A

Australia & New Zealand

  • Houlihan Lokey restructuring whiz Jim McKnight is expected to be appointed by lenders staring down a contentious restructure at Brookfield’s private hospitals group Healthscope, Street Talk understands. (AFR)

  • Privately owned cash delivery company Armourguard has agreed to buy competitor ACM New Zealand from Linfox Armaguard for an undisclosed price. (NBR)

  • There’s a new face at Global Alternative Funds’ Sydney offices. Street Talk understands the private equity fundraising shop has added Oak Hill Advisors managing director Signe Brandt to its operation. (AFR)

  • Austal chairman John Rothwell is weighing up his future with the ASX-listed shipbuilder as it confronts a trio of potential suitors. (AFR)

  • AirTrunk’s looming $15 billion-plus sale has been shrouded in mystery. But now, Street Talk has obtained as much detail as any of the carefully vetted bidders currently signing the non-disclosure agreements. (AFR)

Key Global

  • Clock ticks on BlueScope’s dibs at South32’s $2.5b coal sale; DD afoot (AFR)

  • Exclusive: Beijing nudged Syngenta to withdraw $9 billion Shanghai IPO on market weakness (RT)

  • Genmab Targets New Cancer Therapies With $1.8 Billion ProfoundBio Deal (BBG)

  • Google parent Alphabet has been talking to its advisers about the possibility of making an offer for HubSpot, an online marketing software company with a market value of US$35 billion. (RT)

  • Members of Paramount Global's board agreed on Wednesday to enter into exclusive merger talks with Skydance Media, favoring the independent studio over a US$26 billion offer from private equity firm Apollo Global Management. (RT)

  • Credit data group Experian said on Thursday it had agreed to acquire peer illion for up to A$820 million ($542.10 million), as it taps further into a growing market in Australia and New Zealand. (RT)

VC & Fundraising

  • When you go to raise NZ$4m and end up with US$4m. Sustainable concrete startup Neocrete has closed a seed round led by Singapore VC firm Wavemaker Partners that will help fund commercial production. (NBR)

  • TradeWindow to raise $2.2m, narrows revenue guidance. The trade software business also says it plans to breakeven in FY25. (NBR)

  • Blood products giant CSL is continuing its tradition of issuing ultra-long bonds, gearing up to print a pair of 10-year and 30-year US dollar senior unsecured bonds. (AFR)

  • Gold and copper explorer FireFly Metals was fronting investors with a $52 million equity raise on Tuesday morning. (AFR)

  • A burst of small-cap companies chasing fresh equity has nudged Shaw and Partners to add another director to its equity capital markets team. (AFR)

  • Canva, valued at about $40.5 billion, has acquired a British graphic design software business, Street Talk understands. (AFR)

  • Israel-based chipmaker Hailo has raised $120 million in a new funding round, valuing it at $1.2 billion, and released a high-performance generative AI chip. (RT)

  • Jindal-Backed VC Raises Maiden Fund To Invest in Indian Sports, Gaming (BBG)

  • Former Bell Gully solicitor Min-Kyu Jung relocated from Auckland to San Francisco, where he’s just raised US$4.8m in venture capital for his seven-person, 1-year-old law-tech start-up Ivo with seed stage funders Uncork Capital and Fika Ventures. (Herald)

Equity Raises

Other Global

  • Zeekr, the premium electric vehicle (EV) brand of Chinese automaker Geely (0175.HK), opens new tab , has restarted stalled plans to raise up to $500 million in a New York initial public offering (IPO), according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter. (RT)

  • BlaBlaCar, the Paris-based online car-pooling service, has raised a €100 million ($108 million) credit line so it can buy other firms and grow larger before going public. (BBG)

Debt, Restructuring & Bankruptcy

  • Blood products giant CSL is continuing its tradition of issuing ultra-long bonds, gearing up to print a pair of 10-year and 30-year US dollar senior unsecured bonds. (AFR)

  • Listed medicinal cannabis company Cannasouth has gone into voluntary administration after failing to raise much-needed money from investors, after reporting a full-year loss of $8.8 million in the year ended December. New Zealand's medicinal cannabis industry has struggled to achieve profitability since legalisation in 2020. (RNZ)

  • Mining equipment hire business National Group’s founder and CEO Mark Ackroyd has a few plates spinning. There’s a $250 million debt refinancing that needs to be bedded down by August 30, and Jefferies’ bankers are bracing to open the data room for a sale process this month. (AFR)

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