1 00:00:03,840 --> 00:00:07,280 Speaker 1: It's Thursday, the thirteenth of February twenty twenty five. Welcome 2 00:00:07,320 --> 00:00:09,720 Speaker 1: to the Fast five Business News by Fear and Greed, 3 00:00:09,760 --> 00:00:11,640 Speaker 1: where we give you the top five business stories you 4 00:00:11,680 --> 00:00:14,040 Speaker 1: need to know. And it's five minutes. I'm Michael Thompson 5 00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:15,280 Speaker 1: and good morning, Sean. 6 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:17,240 Speaker 2: Aylmer, Good morning, Michael Shawn. 7 00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:19,759 Speaker 1: Five stories, five minutes. Let's go. Story number one. This 8 00:00:19,800 --> 00:00:22,920 Speaker 1: is a big one. The Commonwealth Bank just keeps motoring along, 9 00:00:23,000 --> 00:00:25,759 Speaker 1: posting a five point one to three billion dollar profit 10 00:00:26,040 --> 00:00:27,880 Speaker 1: for the six months to the end of December. That 11 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:31,760 Speaker 1: is ahead of expectations. The bank increased its dividend to 12 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:34,680 Speaker 1: two dollars twenty five a share, which shareholders, of course love, 13 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,440 Speaker 1: and it reported solid lending growth and credit quality, which 14 00:00:38,440 --> 00:00:41,000 Speaker 1: are two things shown that investment analysts love. 15 00:00:41,200 --> 00:00:44,680 Speaker 2: Not so good expenses will hire, as was investment spending 16 00:00:44,680 --> 00:00:48,360 Speaker 2: in Part two to inflation. All up, the common Wealth 17 00:00:48,400 --> 00:00:51,479 Speaker 2: Bank share price jump two percent to a new record. Yesterday, 18 00:00:51,520 --> 00:00:55,320 Speaker 2: Boss Matt Common said the Australian economy has slaid considerably, 19 00:00:55,840 --> 00:00:58,520 Speaker 2: but he reckons there will be a rate cut next week. 20 00:00:58,680 --> 00:01:00,800 Speaker 2: The Bank's got plenty of great data on what people 21 00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:02,560 Speaker 2: are doing, so the amount of money being put into 22 00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:06,280 Speaker 2: offset balances almost doubles over the last half. Quite a phenomenal, 23 00:01:06,760 --> 00:01:09,280 Speaker 2: very very low bad debt levels in the economy, and 24 00:01:09,440 --> 00:01:12,440 Speaker 2: some sectors like retail and hospitality are actually picking up. 25 00:01:13,360 --> 00:01:17,080 Speaker 1: Sean, can this golden run first CBA keep going. There's 26 00:01:17,120 --> 00:01:20,240 Speaker 1: been forecasts of the bank share price topping out for 27 00:01:20,400 --> 00:01:22,920 Speaker 1: months now, yet last year it was up forty percent 28 00:01:23,319 --> 00:01:25,080 Speaker 1: and nearly eight percent this year. 29 00:01:25,280 --> 00:01:27,680 Speaker 2: Yeah, I wish I knew. It has a market capitalization 30 00:01:27,760 --> 00:01:30,040 Speaker 2: now of two hundred and seventy one billion dollars, meaning 31 00:01:30,080 --> 00:01:33,080 Speaker 2: it's one third bigger than the number two company BHP. 32 00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:36,520 Speaker 2: It's bigger than the combination of National Australia Bank and 33 00:01:36,800 --> 00:01:42,040 Speaker 2: Westpac if you look below the top line numbers in mortgages, 34 00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:45,959 Speaker 2: very competitive market. It's growing. It does about two thirds 35 00:01:45,959 --> 00:01:49,280 Speaker 2: of its loans itself, not through brokers. They're more profitable 36 00:01:49,520 --> 00:01:51,480 Speaker 2: on the deposit side. A third of all ASSI is 37 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 2: called Commonwealth Bank, their main financial institution. It's got eight 38 00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:57,920 Speaker 2: point eight million active app users. It's growing its market 39 00:01:57,960 --> 00:02:00,680 Speaker 2: share and business lending seems to do well on tech 40 00:02:00,760 --> 00:02:04,040 Speaker 2: got a good boss, however, with an upcoming in election, 41 00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:07,480 Speaker 2: boasting too much about being a profitable bank might not 42 00:02:07,600 --> 00:02:11,200 Speaker 2: be the best idea. Also, it's extremely expensive. Its share 43 00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:14,440 Speaker 2: price is at a new high on historical terms, very 44 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:15,280 Speaker 2: very expensive. 45 00:02:16,000 --> 00:02:18,080 Speaker 1: All right, moving on to story number two now, Sean, 46 00:02:18,160 --> 00:02:21,000 Speaker 1: and plenty going on in Canbro as Parliament moves through 47 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:24,560 Speaker 1: its sitting, second sitting week of the year. How about 48 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:27,360 Speaker 1: this one, treasured Jim Chalmers said that the government is 49 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:32,160 Speaker 1: not considering retaliating with its own tariffs against the US 50 00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:34,359 Speaker 1: if it were not to grant exemptions to Australia. 51 00:02:34,400 --> 00:02:36,839 Speaker 2: So in Tuesday, President Donald Trump said he's giving great 52 00:02:36,840 --> 00:02:40,880 Speaker 2: consideration to providing Australian steel and exemption to his twenty 53 00:02:40,880 --> 00:02:44,720 Speaker 2: five percent tariff Primarius Anthony Albanize. He backed it up 54 00:02:44,800 --> 00:02:47,280 Speaker 2: yesterday saying he had given that clear signal. But since 55 00:02:47,280 --> 00:02:49,360 Speaker 2: that conversation there have been claims out of the US 56 00:02:49,360 --> 00:02:54,560 Speaker 2: that Australia's breached verbal undertakings on limiting aluminium exports that 57 00:02:54,720 --> 00:02:57,680 Speaker 2: happened back when Donald Trump was in power the first 58 00:02:57,720 --> 00:02:59,840 Speaker 2: time round, So this one's still up in the air. 59 00:03:00,880 --> 00:03:04,520 Speaker 1: Sean. Story number three. The black market for cigarettes and 60 00:03:04,560 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 1: tobacco appears to be booming, in part because of a 61 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:10,440 Speaker 1: government decision to up the excise on smokes, even though 62 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:14,080 Speaker 1: when they increased taxes, Treasury said it would fuel illegal trading. 63 00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:16,920 Speaker 2: Back in May twenty twenty three, the government increased the 64 00:03:16,960 --> 00:03:20,600 Speaker 2: excise on tobacco another five percent for three years. Means 65 00:03:20,720 --> 00:03:24,480 Speaker 2: in that previous decade, excises up two hundred and eighty 66 00:03:24,480 --> 00:03:27,240 Speaker 2: two percent on tobacco products. According to the fin Review, 67 00:03:27,280 --> 00:03:29,720 Speaker 2: pay smake's costs about fifty bucks. Thirty four dollars goes 68 00:03:29,760 --> 00:03:33,240 Speaker 2: to the government. Documents released under freedom of information laws 69 00:03:33,320 --> 00:03:37,360 Speaker 2: shows that Treasury advised almost advised against it, warning that 70 00:03:37,520 --> 00:03:40,800 Speaker 2: increasing the prices would actually have a first outcome. Rather 71 00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:44,320 Speaker 2: than increased government revenue, it would decrease it as incentives 72 00:03:44,400 --> 00:03:47,160 Speaker 2: to trade in illicit tobacco and vapes would be greater. 73 00:03:47,280 --> 00:03:50,680 Speaker 2: Fast forward to today, it's come true. Tobacco excise provided 74 00:03:50,720 --> 00:03:53,760 Speaker 2: almost ten billion dollars in revenue last year in twenty 75 00:03:53,760 --> 00:03:55,680 Speaker 2: twenty with more than sixteen billion dollars. 76 00:03:56,040 --> 00:03:59,680 Speaker 1: Story number four. AGL Energy is investing in battery projects 77 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:02,640 Speaker 1: over the eighteen months as it looks to manage increasingly 78 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:07,000 Speaker 1: volatile electricity prices due to cold plant closures and increased 79 00:04:07,120 --> 00:04:08,640 Speaker 1: usage of renewables. 80 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:12,000 Speaker 2: It is aiming for one point four gigawatts of new 81 00:04:12,080 --> 00:04:14,600 Speaker 2: storage in New South Wales and Queensland. Now the company 82 00:04:14,600 --> 00:04:18,160 Speaker 2: supplies four point one million customers. Yesterday posted better than 83 00:04:18,200 --> 00:04:21,320 Speaker 2: expected profits, sending its share price higher, while not saying 84 00:04:21,360 --> 00:04:23,919 Speaker 2: how much they'll spend on batteries agels at the cost 85 00:04:24,000 --> 00:04:26,960 Speaker 2: of the devices have fallen along with the falling price 86 00:04:27,040 --> 00:04:29,599 Speaker 2: of lithium. The growth of renewable energy into the grid 87 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:33,880 Speaker 2: has triggered big swings in whole wholesale power prices, from 88 00:04:33,960 --> 00:04:37,120 Speaker 2: sometimes negative levels in the middle of the day to 89 00:04:37,200 --> 00:04:39,679 Speaker 2: spikes that can be up to two hundred times higher 90 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:42,520 Speaker 2: at night. This has opened up an opportunity for grid 91 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:44,839 Speaker 2: scale batteries, which can store power and it's cheap, and 92 00:04:44,880 --> 00:04:47,120 Speaker 2: release it when demand and prices are much higher. 93 00:04:47,680 --> 00:04:51,200 Speaker 1: Last one story number five. Italian police have arrested one 94 00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:55,560 Speaker 1: hundred and sixty members of the Sicilian mafia after wire 95 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,719 Speaker 1: taps revealed that they will moves by these criminal families 96 00:05:00,160 --> 00:05:02,960 Speaker 1: recruit a new generation of foot soldiers and try and 97 00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:07,320 Speaker 1: recreate their once powerful ruling council. This is an amazing story. 98 00:05:07,040 --> 00:05:09,440 Speaker 2: Sure is. The crackdown came after why taps of a 99 00:05:09,560 --> 00:05:14,159 Speaker 2: recently freed mafia boss intercepted complaints that prime Minister Georgia 100 00:05:14,240 --> 00:05:17,320 Speaker 2: Maloney's government was not allowing them to communicate with some 101 00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:21,679 Speaker 2: of their still incarcerated colleagues. On ex Maloney wrote, organized 102 00:05:21,720 --> 00:05:23,800 Speaker 2: crime is in trouble. The fight against the mafia has 103 00:05:23,839 --> 00:05:27,279 Speaker 2: not stopped and will not stop end quote. Though mobsters 104 00:05:27,400 --> 00:05:30,960 Speaker 2: terrorized Sicily for decades, crackdowns in the nineteen nineties early 105 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:34,680 Speaker 2: two thousands weakened the mafia. Many of its top bosses 106 00:05:34,720 --> 00:05:37,760 Speaker 2: died or imprisoned after decades on the run. The group's 107 00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:42,840 Speaker 2: most wanted fugitive, the godfather, Martio Messina Denaro, was arrested 108 00:05:42,839 --> 00:05:45,159 Speaker 2: in twenty twenty three. He died in prison a few 109 00:05:45,160 --> 00:05:47,400 Speaker 2: months later. Just seems that there's a bit of a 110 00:05:47,400 --> 00:05:49,200 Speaker 2: re emergence of the mafia in Italy. 111 00:05:49,760 --> 00:05:51,400 Speaker 1: Yeah, seems to be the way. All right, there we 112 00:05:51,440 --> 00:05:53,400 Speaker 1: go the top five business stories in five minutes. Thank 113 00:05:53,440 --> 00:05:56,600 Speaker 1: you Sean, Thank you Michael. It is Thursday, the thirteenth 114 00:05:56,640 --> 00:05:59,640 Speaker 1: of February twenty twenty five. Remembered it. Please hit follow 115 00:05:59,680 --> 00:06:02,159 Speaker 1: on the po and in five minutes isn't long enough 116 00:06:02,160 --> 00:06:04,600 Speaker 1: for you? You can find our longer daily show called 117 00:06:04,640 --> 00:06:07,640 Speaker 1: Fear and Greed wherever you listen to podcasts. I'm Michael 118 00:06:07,640 --> 00:06:09,720 Speaker 1: Thompson and that was the fast five business news by 119 00:06:09,760 --> 00:06:12,000 Speaker 1: Fear and Greed. Had a great day.