ABS Media Release 20/11/2009

Marking 100 years of Australian Censuses

The Australian Statistician, Brian Pink, today welcomed the announcement made by the Prime Minister and the Assistant Treasurer Sen. Nick Sherry that the next Australian Census of Population and Housing will be held on Tuesday, 9 August, 2011.

“This will mark 100 years of national Censuses in Australia,” said Mr Pink, “the first national Census was taken at midnight between 2 and 3 April, 1911.

“The Australian Bureau of Statistics has always relied on the participation of the Australian public to make the Census a success. We want to continue that great tradition with the sixteenth national Census in 2011,” said Mr Pink.

The Census of Population and Housing plays a foundational role in Australia’s democracy. It is used as the basis for the estimation of the population of Australia and each of the states and territories which are used to determine the number of seats each state and territory has in the House of Representatives. The estimates are also used to determine the share of annual GST funding for each of the states and territories.

Data from the Census is also critical in developing government policy and in planning the delivery of services and as a key input to a broad range of other public and private investment decisions. The Census provides a snapshot of the social and cultural composition of Australian families and households.

The upcoming Census will build on the success of previous Censuses. “Like the last Census in 2006, householders will have the option to complete their Census form safely and simply online via the eCensus” said Mr Pink. The traditional paper Census form will still be available to householders.

The Australian market opened lower, then rebounded, trending upwards throughout the morning before softening in the afternoon. The All Ordinaries ended Monday trading 32 points higher.

The S&P/ASX 200 closed 31 points higher. All sectors finished in the black except the Financial, which closed slightly lower. Material led the way with BHP Billiton rising modestly (+$0.43), while Rio Tinto (+$2.56) Newcrest Mining (+$1.16) finished strongly. The major banks were mixed with Commonwealth Bank (+$0.04) and ANZ Bank (+$0.15) increasing, while Westpac (-$0.05) and National Australia Bank (-$0.29) decreased. Westfield (-$0.11) also moved lower. James Hardie (+$0.47) and Harvey Norman (+$0.22) were notable movers.

In company news, James Hardie Industries reported 1H10 NPAT ex-asbestos/ASIC of US$79.2M, 4% above pcp. Including these items, JHX reported a 1H10 net loss of US$97.5M. 1H10 revenue fell 17%. In the flagship US business, 1H10 & 2Q10 margins both rose on pcp despite shrinking sales volumes; 2Q margins were slightly down from pp but stayed strong. JHX expects FY10 NPAT ex-asbestos/ASIC/redomicile costs to be at the top end of $77M-$115M. Rio Tinto will receive at least US$741M from Cloud Peak Energy Inc’s IPO and related transactions. This includes proceeds of at least US$434M from the sale of part of Rio Tinto’s interest in Cloud Peak Energy Resources LLC (CPER) in connection with Cloud Peak Energy Inc’s IPO and a cash distribution by CPER of US$307M from the proceeds of its debt offering of US$600M. RIO expects to retain a 48% interest in CPER. Cloud Peak Energy is the third largest coal producer in the US.

ABS Release 17/11/2009

Motor Vehicle Census, Australia, 31 Mar 2009

TOTAL NUMBER OF VEHICLES ON REGISTER

There were 15.7 million motor vehicles, including motor cycles, registered in Australia at 31 March 2009. This is 2.5% higher than the number of registrations from the 31 March 2008 Motor Vehicle Census (MVC), and an increase of 15.8% since the 2004 MVC snapshot, when there were 13.5 million vehicles registered in Australia. The average annual growth over this five year period was 3.0%.

STATES AND TERRITORIES

New South Wales had the largest share of the Australian fleet at 31 March 2009 with 4.6 million vehicles or 29.1% of all registered vehicles. Victoria had the second largest share with 4.0 million (25.6%) and Queensland had 3.3 million vehicles (20.9%). The Northern Territory had the smallest share with 0.1 million (0.8%) registered vehicles. These shares are comparable with the distribution of the population across states and territories.

OECD Release 09/11/2009
Harmonised Unemployment Rates (HURs), OECD -
Updated: November 2009

09/11/2009 - The unemployment rate for the OECD area was 8.6% in September 2009, the same as the previous month and 2.3 percentage points higher than a year earlier. In the Euro area, the unemployment rate was 9.7% in September 2009, 0.1 percentage point higher than the previous month and 2.0 percentage points higher than in September 2008. For the United States, the unemployment rate for October 2009 was 10.2%, 0.4 percentage point higher than the previous month and 3.6 percentage points higher than a year earlier. For Japan, the rate was 5.3% in September 2009, 0.2 percentage point lower than the previous month and 1.3 percentage points higher than in September 2008

CGT Event A1 occurs when a court order vests ownership of a property/asset to a trustee for sale or other purpose on behalf of the original owners - ATO ID 2009/129.

GST on Farming Land – Land that is subdivided from farming land for use in residential subdivisions, is not subject to GST when first divided from farming land if transferred to an associated party for the subdivision – however the land must be used for farming up to the date of transfer - ATO ID2009/131.

SMSF – where a trustee of an SMSF pays for a trauma policy for a member and the policy provides for the insurance to be paid directly to the member – then the trustee may be seen to be in breach of the sole purpose test – SMSFD 2009/D1.

Foreign Super – Superannuation lump sums paid to Australian residents 6 months or more after they become a resident require the increase in value or earnings of the fund while they were a resident to be declared as income in their tax return – ATO ID 2009/124.

Following a weak overnight lead, the Australian market plunged at the open, recovered slightly then tumbled further. The market then picked up after lunch and traded sideways into the afternoon. The All Ordinaries ended Friday 36 points lower.

The S&P/ASX 200 closed 42 points lower. The Material and Financial sectors pulled the market lower. BHP Billiton (-$0.54), Rio Tinto (+$0.32) and Newcrest Mining (-$1.01) fell. Commonwealth Bank (-$0.27), Westpac (-$0.22), National Australia Bank (-$1.19), ANZ (-$0.46) and Westfield (-$0.15) extended Thursday’s losses. AXA Asia Pacific (+$1.05) bucked the trend.

Sonic Healthcare (-$0.03) has secured US$250M of notes in the US private placement market from blue chip insurance companies. The raising, to complete in January 2010, comprises two tranches, both at rates fixed at 225bp above the respective current US treasuries. The first tranche of US$95M has a coupon of 5.23% and a term of 7 years, while the second tranche of US$155M has a coupon of 5.73% and a term of 10 years. Proceeds will be used to repay existing bank debt. GPT (+$0.01) announced it has unwound $1.2B of excess offshore interest rate hedges at a cost of $152M. The termination will result in a reduction of GPT’s average interest rate by approximately 1.2%. Babcock & Brown Power (suspended) trading halt was extended as it continues to assess the impact of the interim award in relation to gas contract arbitration in Western Australia. In addition to negotiations with the North West Shelf sellers, the company is also in discussion with its banking syndicate as the banks seek to understand the implications. The company expects to make a further announcement prior to the commencement of trading on 19 November.

Merry Xmas: The ATO is sending out notices to businesses ahead of the festive season, warning them that staff’s Xmas parties are subject to Fringe Benefits Tax unless they fall below the threshold for the year per employee.

ABS Release 12/11/2009

Labour Force, Australia, Oct 2009

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED ESTIMATES (MONTHLY CHANGE)

• Employment increased 24,500 to 10,831,600. Full-time employment increased 2,900 to 7,590,800 and part-time employment increased 21,500 to 3,240,800;
• Unemployment increased 11,100 to 670,100. The number of persons looking for full-time work increased 3,500 to 501,100 and the number of persons looking for part-time work increased 7,600 to 169,000;
• Unemployment rate increased 0.1 pt to 5.8%. The male unemployment rate increased 0.2 pts to 6.0% and the female unemployment rate remained at 5.6%;
• Participation rate remained at 65.2%;
• Aggregate monthly hours worked decreased 1.9 million hours to 1,521.1 million hours.

ABS Release 11/11/2009

Lending Finance, Australia, Sep 2009

HOUSING FINANCE FOR OWNER OCCUPATION

• The total value of owner occupied housing commitments excluding alterations and additions in trend terms recorded no change in percentage terms, while the seasonally adjusted series increased 6.7%.

PERSONAL FINANCE

• The trend series for the value of total personal finance commitments increased 0.9%. Revolving credit commitments rose 1.1% and fixed lending commitments rose 0.6%.
• The seasonally adjusted series for the value of total personal finance commitments decreased 1.8%, with decreases in revolving credit commitments (down 2.2%) and fixed lending commitments (down 1.4%).

COMMERCIAL FINANCE

• The trend series for the value of total commercial finance commitments increased 0.7%. Fixed lending commitments rose 1.4%, while revolving credit commitments fell 0.7%.
• The seasonally adjusted series for the value of total commercial finance commitments increased 8.0%. Both fixed lending commitments and revolving credit commitments increased, up 9.3% and 4.8% respectively.

LEASE FINANCE

Lease finance commitments decreased 0.4% in trend terms and the seasonally adjusted series decreased 3.6%.