30 Apr SURVIVING THE VIRUS; BEST VALUE BOARDS; COVID-19 A CATALYST FOR TRANSPARENCY?
Posted at 04:00h
in Uncategorised
Welcome to today’s business and media intelligence, with insights collected over the past 24-hours as debate continues on the reopening of schools across the country.
International news
- SURVIVING THE VIRUS – CASH HELPS
- New research analysing 6,000 publicly traded companies globally confirms that, in rich countries at least, the corporations most likely to survive the economic shock are those with more cash- and those with strong CSR policies. Read The Economist here for a list of companies that fared best.
- YOU WANT BAIL OUTS, WE WANT TRANSPARENCY
- The Financial Times argues that private companies who receive US government relief should agree in return to become much more transparent. For example, they should disclose how they plan to protect the well being of their employees, customers, communities and environment. Read more here.
- PLUS: Another timely observation from The New Yorker below.
Australian company news
- BEST VALUE BOARDS – WINNERS AND LOSERS
- Australia’s largest company by market cap, CSL, can also claim top spot for board value, according to research published today by The Australian Financial Review. On the other hand, the most expensive Boards are those at AMP, Resmed and Bank of Queensland. Read the article here. (Subscriber access)
- BIG FOUR – ANZ JOINS NAB AND WESTPAC ON VIRUS PAIN
- ANZ elected to take impairment charges of $1.674 billion as it reported interim results today. Of this, $1 billion is related directly to the virus. NAB believes its COVID-19 losses will top $807 million, while Westpac estimates losses at $1.6 billion. Read The AFR article here. (Subscriber access)
- HERE IS HOW BANKS CAN USE COVID-19 TO POLISH THEIR IMAGE
- After several years of being seen as the bad guys of corporate Australia, the COVID-19 pandemic has given our Big Four banks a great opportunity to do the right thing – and improve their reputation, according to the authors of A Matter of Trust in The Australian. (Subscriber access)
Australian markets
- DEADLINE TO LODGE MODERN SLAVERY STATEMENTS EXTENDED
- Recognising the impact of COVID-19 on reporting entities, the Assistant Minister for Customs, Community Safety and Multicultural Affairs has announced a three-month extension for companies required to lodge Modern Slavery Statements. They are now due on 1 March 2021 for companies with a 30 June financial year end. Read the announcement here.
Our daily briefing is not meant to be a summary of media coverage but rather, insights that may be helpful in understanding how organisations are communicating with stakeholders in a time of crisis – and what comes next. Sign up via email.