1 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:06,440 Speaker 1: It's Friday, the twenty eighth of February twenty twenty five. 2 00:00:06,519 --> 00:00:09,200 Speaker 1: Welcome to the Fast five Business News by Fear and Greed, 3 00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:11,000 Speaker 1: where we give you the top five business stories you 4 00:00:11,039 --> 00:00:13,520 Speaker 1: need to know in just five minutes. I'm Michael Thompson 5 00:00:13,560 --> 00:00:17,440 Speaker 1: and good morning Sean Aylmer. Good morning, Michael, Sean. Five stories, 6 00:00:17,560 --> 00:00:19,840 Speaker 1: five minutes. Let's go story number one to a cracker. 7 00:00:19,960 --> 00:00:23,080 Speaker 1: Quantus has reported a jump in its half year profit 8 00:00:23,120 --> 00:00:25,919 Speaker 1: and paid a dividend to shareholders for the first time 9 00:00:25,960 --> 00:00:29,080 Speaker 1: since COVID just as Treasurer Jim Chalmers gives the go 10 00:00:29,160 --> 00:00:30,960 Speaker 1: ahead to the Virgin Katar tire. 11 00:00:31,240 --> 00:00:34,000 Speaker 2: Quantas A share price jumped six percent yesterday on the 12 00:00:34,000 --> 00:00:37,480 Speaker 2: back of increasing confidence that CEO Vanessa Hudson's turnaround plan 13 00:00:37,600 --> 00:00:39,599 Speaker 2: is working. In fact, it up about eighty percent over 14 00:00:39,600 --> 00:00:42,000 Speaker 2: the past years, has done pretty well. The highlight was 15 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:44,600 Speaker 2: a performance of Jetstar. There was a fifty four percent 16 00:00:44,680 --> 00:00:49,040 Speaker 2: jump in underlying domestic earnings, helped by eight new aircraft 17 00:00:49,479 --> 00:00:52,520 Speaker 2: project Sunrise that Sydney Melbourne to London, New York still 18 00:00:52,600 --> 00:00:56,440 Speaker 2: due to start next year. Quantus's underlying profit was up 19 00:00:56,480 --> 00:00:59,200 Speaker 2: eleven percent to one point four billion dollars forty six 20 00:00:59,200 --> 00:01:00,520 Speaker 2: months at the end of the seas. But the problem 21 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:01,960 Speaker 2: with Quantas at the moment there is a lack of 22 00:01:02,000 --> 00:01:05,600 Speaker 2: investment in planes over many, many years they're flying aging 23 00:01:05,640 --> 00:01:08,959 Speaker 2: Boeing seven three seven. There's also delays to the delivery 24 00:01:08,959 --> 00:01:11,640 Speaker 2: of new aircraft. Now Vanessa Hudson said yes, so that 25 00:01:11,800 --> 00:01:14,280 Speaker 2: the company will refit more than half of its seven 26 00:01:14,360 --> 00:01:18,640 Speaker 2: three sevens. More seats, more legroom, more overhead locker space. 27 00:01:18,959 --> 00:01:21,640 Speaker 2: Problem is old planes costs more to run and generally 28 00:01:21,680 --> 00:01:22,640 Speaker 2: have lower capacity. 29 00:01:23,280 --> 00:01:25,399 Speaker 1: So good day for Quantas. Quantas is on the app 30 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:28,520 Speaker 1: just as Virgin Sean gets a new twenty five percent 31 00:01:28,560 --> 00:01:32,160 Speaker 1: stakeholder in Qatar and becomes a much tougher competitor in 32 00:01:32,200 --> 00:01:33,200 Speaker 1: the international market. 33 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:35,679 Speaker 2: The two announcements yesterday came within about an hour of 34 00:01:35,720 --> 00:01:40,200 Speaker 2: each other. Ironic. The Qatar Virgin tie up will allow 35 00:01:40,360 --> 00:01:44,520 Speaker 2: people to book a Virgin ticket and end up all 36 00:01:44,560 --> 00:01:47,600 Speaker 2: over the place. Basically you can. You'll fly a Qatar 37 00:01:47,960 --> 00:01:51,279 Speaker 2: Airways flight to Doha and then go on from there. 38 00:01:51,560 --> 00:01:55,680 Speaker 2: The winner, and all this theoretically is heightened is customers 39 00:01:55,760 --> 00:01:56,880 Speaker 2: due to heightened competition. 40 00:01:57,400 --> 00:01:59,360 Speaker 1: Yeah sounds good to me. All right, on to storry 41 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:02,920 Speaker 1: number two now on sales growth at Coal's is exceeding 42 00:02:03,120 --> 00:02:06,760 Speaker 1: art rival Woolworth's, though the group's half year profit actually 43 00:02:06,800 --> 00:02:07,520 Speaker 1: fell slightly. 44 00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:12,120 Speaker 2: Coals benefited from industrial action at Woolly's distribution centers late 45 00:02:12,200 --> 00:02:14,000 Speaker 2: last year. It said it gained about one hundred and 46 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:17,200 Speaker 2: twenty million dollars in sales. Its pre tax earnings were 47 00:02:17,280 --> 00:02:19,280 Speaker 2: up seven percent, the net profit was down three percent, 48 00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:22,760 Speaker 2: better than expected all around, helped the share price jump 49 00:02:22,880 --> 00:02:27,000 Speaker 2: three and a half percent. Sales across its supermarkets rose 50 00:02:27,040 --> 00:02:30,600 Speaker 2: four point three percent. Woollies was two point seven percent. 51 00:02:31,200 --> 00:02:34,200 Speaker 2: Fierce rivals those two, so to have such a difference 52 00:02:34,240 --> 00:02:38,000 Speaker 2: between them aug as well for Coals mind Julie Weckert, 53 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:41,239 Speaker 2: the CEO, said that she understood people mostly shopped, or 54 00:02:41,280 --> 00:02:44,720 Speaker 2: about half the people shopped based on locality, so all 55 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:46,280 Speaker 2: those that went to Coals because of the problems that 56 00:02:46,280 --> 00:02:49,200 Speaker 2: Woolly's late last year probably won't necessarily stick. 57 00:02:50,400 --> 00:02:53,640 Speaker 1: Story number three. The Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank, 58 00:02:53,760 --> 00:02:57,480 Speaker 1: Andrew Houser, was appearing before Senate Estimates yesterday and he 59 00:02:57,480 --> 00:02:59,240 Speaker 1: said something interesting. He said that if the cash rat 60 00:02:59,320 --> 00:03:02,120 Speaker 1: held steady at four point three five percent for a period, 61 00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:03,880 Speaker 1: inflation would be too low. 62 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:08,560 Speaker 2: So that's why the Reserve Bank cut rates last week. 63 00:03:09,000 --> 00:03:11,960 Speaker 2: But what was interesting, he said, the Reserve Bank forecasts 64 00:03:12,040 --> 00:03:14,600 Speaker 2: show underlying inflation will hit and stick at two point 65 00:03:14,639 --> 00:03:19,480 Speaker 2: seven percent throughout next year based on market pricing. Now, 66 00:03:19,520 --> 00:03:22,720 Speaker 2: market pricing suggests two or three, sorry, three or four 67 00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:25,520 Speaker 2: rate cuts. What he said was that the Reserve Bank 68 00:03:25,520 --> 00:03:27,320 Speaker 2: doesn't want two point seven percent, it wants two point 69 00:03:27,360 --> 00:03:32,200 Speaker 2: five percent. Therefore, three or four rate cuts probably isn't 70 00:03:32,240 --> 00:03:35,960 Speaker 2: what's going to happen. What do you read into that, Well, 71 00:03:36,040 --> 00:03:38,320 Speaker 2: there are still maybe not three or four, but two 72 00:03:38,400 --> 00:03:41,280 Speaker 2: or three or rate cuts in the offing. That's good years. 73 00:03:41,760 --> 00:03:45,720 Speaker 1: Yeah, certainly is story number four. Global energy giant BP 74 00:03:46,040 --> 00:03:49,240 Speaker 1: has dumped all premise of shifting to a green energy company, 75 00:03:49,760 --> 00:03:53,240 Speaker 1: abandoning its five year attempt to reinvent itself and returning 76 00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:54,320 Speaker 1: to oil and gas. 77 00:03:54,600 --> 00:03:57,360 Speaker 2: At least it's being honest. The company will boost spending 78 00:03:57,360 --> 00:03:59,440 Speaker 2: on oil and gas by twenty percent to around ten 79 00:03:59,640 --> 00:04:03,200 Speaker 2: billion US dollars a year fifteen billion ossie, and it 80 00:04:03,240 --> 00:04:07,360 Speaker 2: will cut spending on renewables by about seventy percent. The 81 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:11,520 Speaker 2: chief executive said it was a fundamentmental reset of BP strategy. 82 00:04:11,840 --> 00:04:15,280 Speaker 2: The company's ditched targets to cut fossil fuel production, and 83 00:04:15,520 --> 00:04:18,960 Speaker 2: it's ditched the idea of developing fifty gigawatts of renewable power. 84 00:04:19,400 --> 00:04:21,640 Speaker 2: Now the green strategy was launched by the former CEO, 85 00:04:21,720 --> 00:04:24,720 Speaker 2: it never really fully went over investors. BP will also 86 00:04:24,800 --> 00:04:28,880 Speaker 2: put up for sale assets including its lubricnsarms, Castro, and 87 00:04:29,080 --> 00:04:31,320 Speaker 2: a share of its solar business light Source. 88 00:04:32,600 --> 00:04:35,120 Speaker 1: Finally, Sean, there is plenty obviously going on in the 89 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 1: US at a political level, but around the breakfast table, 90 00:04:38,160 --> 00:04:42,400 Speaker 1: the discussion is increasingly about the price of eggs. We're 91 00:04:42,440 --> 00:04:45,320 Speaker 1: talking about eight US dollars a dozen or an AUSSI 92 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:47,640 Speaker 1: dollar terms. That's like what a dollar an egg. 93 00:04:48,000 --> 00:04:51,880 Speaker 2: And the US Agricultural Department predicts they could jump forty 94 00:04:51,920 --> 00:04:55,000 Speaker 2: percent this year. It's what's that a dollar forty? You 95 00:04:55,120 --> 00:04:58,560 Speaker 2: add on a tariff, it's about a buck seventy buck 96 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:01,440 Speaker 2: seventy and a wow, that's the that's a lot of money. 97 00:05:01,760 --> 00:05:04,919 Speaker 2: Millions of birds been killed across the US since December 98 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:07,320 Speaker 2: as the outbreak of bird flu hit egg laying farms 99 00:05:07,360 --> 00:05:10,600 Speaker 2: from Iowa to California to North Carolina. Like an Australia, 100 00:05:10,640 --> 00:05:14,279 Speaker 2: supermarkets are limiting purchases over there, though restaurants are actually 101 00:05:14,320 --> 00:05:19,359 Speaker 2: adding egg surcharges. Now the Department of Agriculture wants to 102 00:05:19,400 --> 00:05:22,400 Speaker 2: import seventy to one hundred million eggs over the next 103 00:05:22,440 --> 00:05:23,200 Speaker 2: two months. 104 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:25,440 Speaker 1: All right, there we go, the top five business stories 105 00:05:25,440 --> 00:05:27,760 Speaker 1: in five minutes. Thank you very much, Sean, Thank you, Michael. 106 00:05:28,200 --> 00:05:30,600 Speaker 1: It's Friday, the twenty eighth of February twenty twenty five. 107 00:05:30,640 --> 00:05:32,680 Speaker 1: Remember to hit follow on the podcast, and if five 108 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:35,039 Speaker 1: minutes isn't enough, you can find our longer daily show 109 00:05:35,080 --> 00:05:37,760 Speaker 1: called Fear and Greed where if you listen to podcasts. 110 00:05:37,800 --> 00:05:39,880 Speaker 1: I'm Michael Thompson. And that was the fast five business 111 00:05:39,960 --> 00:05:44,880 Speaker 1: news by Fear and Greed. Have a great day.