Live updates: All the latest news from ASX reporting season
And we’re off ... the first big week of reporting season!
The Aussie economy may be ticking along to the gentle hum of a finely-tuned engine but not everyone is basking in the warm glow of healthy balance sheet.
The next two weeks will highlight the good, the bad and down-right ugly of corporate Australia.
Grab the popcorn and stay tuned as we bring you all the news you need to know.
The first bigwig up today is JB Hi-Fi.
Key Events
Santos extends talks with suitor XRG
Oil major Santos has pushed out a period of exclusive talks with its takeover suitor until later this month.
The Adelaide-based company received the bid - priced at $US5.761 ($8.892) a share - in June from the XRG consortium, led by a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and Carlyle.
The proposal values Santos at about $36.4 billion.
Santos said XRG had now substantially completed its due diligence under the exclusivity deal.
“The XRG consortium has confirmed it has not discovered anything to date that would cause the XRG consortium to withdraw its indicative proposal and has confirmed its commitment to working constructively with Santos to complete the due diligence promptly and agree on a binding transaction,” Santos told the ASX in an update this morning.
“To complete due diligence and progress a binding transaction, the XRG consortium has requested a two-week extension to the due diligence and exclusivity period under the process deed.
“Santos notes that there is no certainty that the XRG consortium will enter into a binding scheme implementation agreement on terms acceptable to Santos or that the potential transaction will proceed.”
The talks wil run until August 22.
Here’s how markets closed on Friday in the US ...
US stocks ended higher and the Nasdaq notched a record closing high for the second straight day on Friday as technology-related shares, including Apple, gained and as investors were optimistic about potential interest rate cuts.
The three major indexes also registered solid gains for the week.
Recent weaker economic data has underpinned expectations for rate cuts, while investors are evaluating Trump’s interim pick for a Federal Reserve governor.
The president late in Thursday’s session nominated Council of Economic Advisers Chair Stephen Miran to a short-term board seat following Adriana Kugler’s abrupt exit last week, as he narrowed his shortlist to succeed Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whose term ends on May 15.
Read the full market report here.
Originally published on The West Australian
