1 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:06,960 Speaker 1: It's Friday, the eighteenth of April twenty twenty five. Welcome 2 00:00:07,000 --> 00:00:09,400 Speaker 1: to the Fast five Business News by Fear and Greed, 3 00:00:09,440 --> 00:00:11,200 Speaker 1: where we give you the top five business stories you 4 00:00:11,240 --> 00:00:13,440 Speaker 1: need to know in just five minutes. Are Michael Thompson 5 00:00:13,440 --> 00:00:14,920 Speaker 1: and Good Morning, Sean Aylmer. 6 00:00:15,000 --> 00:00:16,880 Speaker 2: Good morning, Michael, Sean. 7 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 1: It might be good Friday, but we still have five 8 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:20,960 Speaker 1: stories to get through. Let's get cracking with a story 9 00:00:21,079 --> 00:00:24,040 Speaker 1: number one. The labor market rebounded strongly in March, but 10 00:00:24,079 --> 00:00:27,760 Speaker 1: economists still believe the Reserve Bank will cut interest rates 11 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:28,880 Speaker 1: when it meets in May. 12 00:00:29,040 --> 00:00:32,920 Speaker 2: After the election, thirty two thousand people found work last month, 13 00:00:33,479 --> 00:00:36,000 Speaker 2: slightly fewer than expected, and the unemployment rates stayed at 14 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:38,600 Speaker 2: four point one percent now. It followed a surprising drop 15 00:00:39,000 --> 00:00:41,640 Speaker 2: of fifty three thousand jobs in February. The best way 16 00:00:41,640 --> 00:00:44,240 Speaker 2: to judge what professional investors think the labor force data 17 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 2: means for interest rates is to check out bond markets. 18 00:00:46,720 --> 00:00:49,560 Speaker 2: They've now priced in a twenty five basis point cut 19 00:00:49,880 --> 00:00:52,920 Speaker 2: next month. That would be May twenty. In fact, they 20 00:00:53,400 --> 00:00:55,200 Speaker 2: reckon there's about a twenty five percent chance of a 21 00:00:55,320 --> 00:00:58,480 Speaker 2: fifty basis point cut. Wouldn't that be nice? Earlier this 22 00:00:58,520 --> 00:01:00,680 Speaker 2: week minutes from Reserve Bank Board eating of two weeks 23 00:01:00,720 --> 00:01:03,120 Speaker 2: ago said the Central Bank was focused on inflation, the 24 00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:06,760 Speaker 2: labor market, and international events. On that basis, only a 25 00:01:06,840 --> 00:01:09,440 Speaker 2: surprisingly high inflation figure at the end of this month 26 00:01:09,560 --> 00:01:12,679 Speaker 2: is likely to stop a rate cut, economists, said Sean. 27 00:01:12,720 --> 00:01:16,240 Speaker 1: Moving on to story number two, now local markets, it's 28 00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:17,320 Speaker 1: all about gold right now. 29 00:01:17,400 --> 00:01:20,880 Speaker 2: Yeah, gold, gold, gold, gold goal now. While the ASX 30 00:01:21,040 --> 00:01:25,600 Speaker 2: two hundred yesterday was fairly flat, the gold stocks continued 31 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:29,880 Speaker 2: to do well. That's because everyone is buying gold as 32 00:01:29,920 --> 00:01:32,319 Speaker 2: a safe haven asset amid all the norm oil it hit. 33 00:01:32,440 --> 00:01:35,360 Speaker 2: The precious metal hit a new high yesterday. It's training 34 00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:37,720 Speaker 2: about fifty We talked about US dollars, but in nousy dolls, 35 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:41,080 Speaker 2: it's about fifty two to fifty three one hundred US 36 00:01:41,160 --> 00:01:43,720 Speaker 2: dollars an ounce. That's a lot of money. Energy stocks 37 00:01:43,720 --> 00:01:46,039 Speaker 2: did pretty well yesterday for the day ahead of Easter. 38 00:01:46,120 --> 00:01:48,400 Speaker 2: There was plenty of corporate news around, headed up by 39 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:51,440 Speaker 2: BHP announcing it shipped weaker than expected volumes of iron 40 00:01:51,520 --> 00:01:53,520 Speaker 2: ore over the past three months, in part due to 41 00:01:53,640 --> 00:01:56,440 Speaker 2: whether Boss Mike Henry he had a bit to say 42 00:01:56,480 --> 00:01:59,160 Speaker 2: about tariffs and things. He said China's ability to ramp 43 00:01:59,240 --> 00:02:02,520 Speaker 2: up to mystic cons umption will determine whether the Trump 44 00:02:02,600 --> 00:02:06,360 Speaker 2: Administration's tariffs will create a global economic downturn. 45 00:02:06,920 --> 00:02:11,280 Speaker 1: Story number three. Transurban's newest Sydney toll road, west Connects, 46 00:02:11,360 --> 00:02:14,720 Speaker 1: is becoming more popular with drivers, with average daily traffic 47 00:02:14,840 --> 00:02:17,760 Speaker 1: jumping more than ten percent in the March quarter compared 48 00:02:17,800 --> 00:02:18,600 Speaker 1: with a year earlier. 49 00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:21,720 Speaker 2: Motorists can use west Connects to get to Sydney Airport 50 00:02:21,800 --> 00:02:24,520 Speaker 2: after a new connecting free road, the Sydney Gateway, opened 51 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:27,040 Speaker 2: in September. The bad used for West Connects shareholders, at 52 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:29,760 Speaker 2: least it's some of the other toll roads in that city. 53 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:34,239 Speaker 2: Cross City Tunnel Eastern Distributor both experienced lower traffic volumes 54 00:02:34,280 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 2: as a result of the success of West Connects. Overall 55 00:02:37,560 --> 00:02:40,720 Speaker 2: traffic numbers increased in Sydney, they increased in Melbourne. That 56 00:02:40,800 --> 00:02:43,760 Speaker 2: actually dropped slightly in Brisbane, with Transurban blaming the impact 57 00:02:43,800 --> 00:02:47,520 Speaker 2: of cyclone, Alfred, Transurban's share price has risen sharply amid 58 00:02:47,600 --> 00:02:50,400 Speaker 2: all the tariff turmoil. It's just a stock that provides 59 00:02:50,440 --> 00:02:53,360 Speaker 2: constant returns of defensive stock. Having said that, it actually 60 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:54,959 Speaker 2: tumbled at the beginning of the year, so it's now 61 00:02:55,000 --> 00:02:58,200 Speaker 2: trading about where it started twenty twenty five story. 62 00:02:58,040 --> 00:03:01,120 Speaker 1: Number four twenty one of the country's biggest investors are 63 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:04,320 Speaker 1: demanding that the ASX allowed local shareholders to say on 64 00:03:04,360 --> 00:03:07,639 Speaker 1: whether James Hardy can move its primary share market listing 65 00:03:07,680 --> 00:03:11,160 Speaker 1: to the United States. As fury grows over the building 66 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:16,240 Speaker 1: Materials giants fourteen billion dollar merger with American Group AASEC. 67 00:03:16,360 --> 00:03:19,400 Speaker 2: They are not happy these shareholders. In a letter to 68 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:22,760 Speaker 2: AX chair David Clark and chief executive Helen loft House, 69 00:03:23,160 --> 00:03:25,640 Speaker 2: the group of investors who control more than the trillion 70 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:28,760 Speaker 2: dollars in capital have also asked the market operator to 71 00:03:28,800 --> 00:03:31,400 Speaker 2: review its listing rules that allow companies to issue large 72 00:03:31,440 --> 00:03:35,120 Speaker 2: numbers of shares for takeovers without a shareholder vote. According 73 00:03:35,160 --> 00:03:38,040 Speaker 2: to the Finn review, this is what James Hardy is doing, 74 00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:40,240 Speaker 2: and it wants to make his primary listing on Wall Street, 75 00:03:40,240 --> 00:03:43,600 Speaker 2: and local shareholders basically don't get a save. The letter says, 76 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:46,840 Speaker 2: and I acquired these issues create investment risk for shareholders 77 00:03:46,880 --> 00:03:50,080 Speaker 2: invested in AX listed companies generally, and we would encourage 78 00:03:50,120 --> 00:03:52,360 Speaker 2: the AX to have proper regard to the rights of 79 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:56,440 Speaker 2: long standing investors in these important decisions now. Signatories include 80 00:03:56,440 --> 00:04:02,960 Speaker 2: Ossie Super unisuper aware, super Hester, early fundsmen and Fidelity Australia. 81 00:04:02,360 --> 00:04:04,760 Speaker 1: Story number five Sean, we thought we'd chuck in some 82 00:04:05,040 --> 00:04:07,000 Speaker 1: fun facts about East, So the stuff you probably don't 83 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:08,920 Speaker 1: think about, and indeed you may not actually need to know. 84 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:09,680 Speaker 1: But it is Easter. 85 00:04:10,440 --> 00:04:13,640 Speaker 2: Yeah that's true. Yeah, Christians, I mean, obviously Christians think 86 00:04:13,680 --> 00:04:16,599 Speaker 2: about the resurrection of Christ, new beginnings. That's what most 87 00:04:16,680 --> 00:04:20,479 Speaker 2: of the Eastern traditions reflect in Christianity. But all the 88 00:04:20,520 --> 00:04:23,400 Speaker 2: other things which aren't Christians kind of reflect that as well. 89 00:04:23,800 --> 00:04:27,440 Speaker 2: So eggs, chocolate, eggs symbol of fertility. The Easter bunny 90 00:04:27,600 --> 00:04:30,960 Speaker 2: nothing to do with religion. The Easter bunny dates back 91 00:04:31,080 --> 00:04:34,719 Speaker 2: to hundreds of years, beginning in pre Christian Germany. The 92 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:38,320 Speaker 2: hair was said to be the symbol of pagan goddess 93 00:04:38,360 --> 00:04:41,880 Speaker 2: of spring and fertility that got into mintingguilled with Christianity, 94 00:04:41,920 --> 00:04:44,280 Speaker 2: We've now got the Easter bunny. But again it's kind 95 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:47,640 Speaker 2: of that whole fertility thing going on the word Easter. 96 00:04:48,000 --> 00:04:48,080 Speaker 1: Now. 97 00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:52,680 Speaker 2: According to scholars, Easter was named after the Anglo Saxon 98 00:04:52,760 --> 00:04:56,039 Speaker 2: goddess o Estra. I'm going to say that wrong, Oe 99 00:04:56,400 --> 00:05:00,919 Speaker 2: s Tre fertility goddess. Once again, saying sort of concept. 100 00:05:02,080 --> 00:05:04,920 Speaker 2: The point is, even though most of the stuff we're 101 00:05:04,960 --> 00:05:06,919 Speaker 2: talking about has nothing to do with Christianity, it is 102 00:05:06,960 --> 00:05:10,240 Speaker 2: all about fertility. Yeah, Michael. The biggest Easter egg ever 103 00:05:10,320 --> 00:05:15,280 Speaker 2: made five thousand pounds Alberta, Canada, most expensive nine million 104 00:05:15,560 --> 00:05:18,719 Speaker 2: pounds sold at Christie's in London two thousand and seven. 105 00:05:19,160 --> 00:05:22,400 Speaker 2: It was a faber Jay egg made by the man himself, 106 00:05:22,440 --> 00:05:24,640 Speaker 2: Carl faber Jay, back in nine and o two. 107 00:05:25,120 --> 00:05:28,400 Speaker 1: Oh so you can't actually eat it, No, you cannot. 108 00:05:28,960 --> 00:05:31,320 Speaker 1: That's disappointing. There we go to the top five business 109 00:05:31,320 --> 00:05:33,920 Speaker 1: stories in five minutes. Thank you Sean, Thank you Michael. 110 00:05:34,040 --> 00:05:37,119 Speaker 1: It's Friday, the eighteenth of April twenty twenty five. Remember 111 00:05:37,160 --> 00:05:39,159 Speaker 1: to hit follow on the podcast. And if five minutes 112 00:05:39,200 --> 00:05:41,159 Speaker 1: isn't enough, you're go to find our longer daily show 113 00:05:41,200 --> 00:05:44,000 Speaker 1: called Fear and Greed where ever you listen to podcasts. 114 00:05:44,000 --> 00:05:46,080 Speaker 1: I'm Michael Thompson and that was the past five business 115 00:05:46,080 --> 00:05:46,560 Speaker 1: news by. 116 00:05:46,440 --> 00:05:47,080 Speaker 2: Fear and Greed. 117 00:05:47,320 --> 00:05:48,000 Speaker 1: Have a great day.