Business insights from across the market this week

"What we've built is a war-chest of technology that allows us to be a disrupter in a range of different areas." Jim Rowan, CEO, Dyson

As part of the NAOS investment process, we pay particular attention to the comments made by company CEOs and business leaders in order to gain a greater understanding of the current investment environment and key trends that may be emerging. Below are quotes from the week which in our view detail some of the most important and prominent industry trends and economic factors impacting their businesses.

Economy

“There is a risk that a reduced appetite to lend will overly curtail borrowing with consequent effects for the Australian economy.” Guy Debelle, Deputy Governor, RBA

"The Australian banks’ similarity is not so obviously beneficial in the current circumstance…their similar behaviour and similar reaction to events such as falling house prices run the risk of amplifying the downturn in the housing market." Guy Debelle, Deputy Governor, RBA

Supermarkets

"Our Supermarkets Pillar continued to face challenging market conditions, however it was encouraging to see a slowdown in the rate of deflation which helped deliver an improvement in the sales trajectory for both ourselves and our retailer network" Jeff Adams, CEO, Metcash

Financial Planning

“I am not finger-pointing at any one rating agency - we have a whole sector in Australia where there is Morningstar, Lonsec, Chant West, Superratings and Zenith, and it’s time to review how it all works in order to get rid of perceived conflicts of interest and low trust in our sector.” Colin Tate, CEO, Conexus Financial

Finance

"Our customers have different lifestyles and habits so we inquire about income and expenses on a case-by-case basis as part of our responsible lending obligations…Afterpay expenses represent a liability which would need to be understood as part of our broader inquiries regarding income and ongoing expenses." Westpac Spokesman

Property

“Prices had grown too rapidly for a healthy market, there had to be an adjustment. The market will reach the bottom next year; it could be in the next few months." Brian White, Chairman, Ray White Group 

Telecommunication

"I do believe that we will see Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) increase in the industry as 5G comes along. I think customers will be willing to pay more for 5G." Andy Penn, CEO, Telstra

"The current wholesale price for the NBN is unsustainable and is leading to operators starting to exit the business and will ultimately lead to higher prices for consumers. As you have heard me say before, this is something that will have to be addressed if the NBN and the industry is ever to be viable and sustainable." Andy Penn, CEO, Telstra

“The industry changes with the National Broadband Network has had a tremendous impact on all of the operators that all operators have to adjust to, so everyone is under profit pressure it’s not just TPG.” David Teoh, CEO, TPG

Tourism

"The [falling Australian] dollar definitely helps. It makes it cheaper for tourists to come over here. But also, domestically, to go overseas it costs more, so we get more local tourists enjoying our country as a holiday destination." Jeff Ellison, CEO, SeaLink Travel

Agriculture

"Current forecasts have summer crop plantings down by some 20% on the prior year. Given an extended period of low demand due to the dry conditions, channel inventory levels are higher than normal." Greg Hunt, CEO, Nufarm

“Just as mobile computing, sensors and artificial intelligence are transforming other industries, we think they will have a dramatic impact on the farm." Ben Chostner, General Manager, Blue River Technology [a subsidiary of John Deere]

Financial Markets

"When we take a look at even the macro environment, the fundamentals still look pretty good and I think that there is a big disconnect at this point in time between the market technicals and what we're really seeing on the ground." John Gerspach, CFO, Citigroup

Technology

“As we put automation into our business it hasn’t cut our jobs, it’s enabled us to attract women into our workforce because automation is allowing women to come into what was previously very manual jobs." Christine Holgate, CEO, Australia Post

"What we've built is a war-chest of technology that allows us to be a disrupter in a range of different areas." Jim Rowan, CEO, Dyson

"Memory prices has been a headwind for us and the whole industry for 18 months and it still is." Kelly Kramer, CFO, Cisco Systems

Construction

“A slower than expected start to the historically busier second half of the year in the construction market in Western Australia and recovery from the earlier adverse weather conditions in the east coast markets has not been as strong as expected." Martin Brydon, MD, Adelaide Brighton