Pressure is mounting on the blue-blood directors of Woolworths to decide whether they are pillars of the community or pariahs.
Wesfarmers
Bartholomeusz: Woolworths’ executive exodus
Where once Woolworths dictated terms to Coles, it now finds itself in the unaccustomed position of being forced to react to Coles’ initiatives.
Wesfarmers transparency sets example on contract disclosures
It can be argued that ASIC and the ASX are allowing the likes of BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto to trade in an uninformed market because of a failure to update the market on quarterly iron ore and coal contract prices.
Productivity Commission strikes out on curbing runaway exec pay
While the Productivity Commission report was not without merit, when it comes to actually curbing runaway pay, it will be of little or no effect, writes Adam Schwab.
Crikey Says: From WA premier to Wesfarmers lobbyist?
Former WA premier Alan Carpenter joining Wesfarmers as its chief spinner and lobbyist is, in a word, a disgrace.
Grocery retail dominance is a threat to public health
It is easy to bash the grocery heavies, but to really address the issue of healthy eating, a multi-faceted approach is required — one that looks at social and health factors as much as economic ones, writes Jon Wardle.
Wayne Swan rings hollow on executive pay
Treasurer Wayne Swan and Prime Minister Kevin Rudd certainly know how to make the right noises about excessive executive pay. But will we see more than talk on the issue?
Coles folds on pokies, will Woolies be next?
Those nice men from Wesfarmers, sitting in pokies-free Perth, have wilted in the face of a strong campaign over kids in venues and committed to spend millions cleaning up their gambling venues, writes Stephen Mayne.
Two supermarkets, one leader
Woolworths is in another class from Coles, says Malcolm Maiden. With Woolies lifting food and liquor sales by 7.4% in the last year, Coles is left to hope: surely they can’t keep this up.
Morning Market Report: Market down this morning
The market is down 7, but Wall St gained slightly overnight. Also, Woolworths is up, but the focus is on the Hardware roll-out, which will probably not reflect well on Wesfarmers (Bunnings).
Lowes hardware just the beginning for Woolworths
Retail giant Woolworths is moving into hardware to take on Wesfarmers’s key business, Bunnings Warehouse, making a takeover bid for Danks Holdings, which operates Home Timber and Hardware, Thrifty-Link and Plants Plus Garden Centres.
Morning Market Report: Wall St down
Wall St was down 34 on Friday, with metals and oil struggling.
A Crikey cure for outlandish executive pay
Submissions continue at the Productivity Commission’s inquiry into executive pay. Adam Schwab cuts to the chase.
Wesfarmers pulls up short on executive pay
The sorry state of executive pay has been exemplified by the press coverage allocated to Wesfarmers’ decision to freeze the pay and cut the bonuses of its top executives, writes Adam Schwab.
Morning Market Report: Resources damage market
The market took a hit from the resource sector, down 41 with BHP and RIO down 2.3% and 4.1% respectively.
Morning Market Report: BEN gets crushed
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank (BEN) getting smashed after releasing its Trading Update.
Wesfarmers hit with enormous cash deluge
Wesfarmers has just been hit by the biggest cash deluge a secondary market capital raising has ever delivered in Australia, writes Stephen Mayne.
Wesfarmers’ big issue
Nine months is a long time in the context of the global financial crisis, writes Stephen Bartholomeusz, and Westfarmers was forced into corner.
Merrill Lynch says sell Wesfarmers, risk “too high”
Merrill Lynch has issued a very strong “sell” recommendation for Wesfarmers following the company’s $2.5 billion rights issue to help fund its $18 billion aquisition of Coles, writes Glenn Dyer.
Briefly Business: Wesfarmers, Macarthur Coal and Chris Murphy
Wesfarmers rights issue … Macarthur Coal takeover?… hedge fund managers … Austock … Chris Murphy wants his fruit back.
Tips and rumours
Lotus Notes vs. Microsoft. Re. “Tips and rumours” (Friday, item 8). ”FAHCSIA is in the middle of a transition from a prehistoric Lotus Notes platform to MS Office, which is not going anywhere near as smoothly or as cheaply as expected.” Yet again another Commonwealth Department has been wooed from an established, industrial strength and modern […]
Coles makes profit, not many killed
Just when it seemed like the fiasco at the Coles Group had drawn to a close, the AFR revealed today that the merged retailer just “produced its best first quarter profit figure in five years,” writes Adam Schwab.
Some (gratuitous) advice for Wesfarmers
In spite of some recent nervousness about the shareholder vote, the deal is done, and Wesfarmers will get the Coles’ door keys and the safe combinations on 23 November, writes Rob Lake.
