EML Payments nabs $189m discount for European acquisition

Prepaid card solutions provider EML Payments (ASX: EML) have skyrocketed by more than 60 per cent today following a drastic renegotiation of its largest acquisition to date. The Brisbane-based company had previously reached a deal to buy Prepaid Financial Services (Ireland) Limited (PFS) for £226 million (A$453.2 million), but ...

Johnson & Johnson sets ambitious Covid-19 vaccine target

US pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has teamed up with a government office to commit more than US$1 billion (AUD$1.62 billion) for research, development and clinical testing of a Covid-19 vaccine candidate. The company announced yesterday its subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies was expanding a partnership ...

Rex calls force majeure and cancels Queensland flights

In a strange turn of events regional airline Regional Express (ASX: REX) has announced it will shut down its Queensland services, just days after thanking the Federal Government for much-needed financial support. Rex has essentially performed an aerial backflip; over the weekend the company's deputy chairman John Sharp welcomed a $198...

Wesfarmers sells chunk of Coles for $1 billion

Wesfarmers (ASX: WES) has sold 5.2 per cent of issued capital in supermarket Coles Group (ASX: COL) for $1.06 billion. The sale will proceed at $15.39 per share, and Wesfarmers expects to recognise a pre-tax profit on sale of around $130 million as a result. Wesfarmers, the former parent company of the well-performing supermarket, wil...

Nick Scali closes all stores, stands down majority of staff

Furniture retailer Nick Scali (ASX: NCK) has announced it will temporarily shut all stores from the close of business today, standing down the majority of its 500-strong workforce in the process. The group said it took the decision due to social isolation and distancing measures implemented by governments in Australia and New Zealand, as ...

MinRex Resources is actively exploring near $1.1 billion Silver Lake resource

Gold explorer MinRex Resources (ASX: MRR), which holds ground just a few kilometres north-east of the $1.2 billion capped Silver Lake Resources Ltd's (ASX: SLR) gold and copper Deflector Mine, is set to release new exploration results at its Deflector Extended Gold Project at Gullewa in Western Australia. MinRex currently holds five p...

Ansell maintains guidance as glove demand stays strong

Glove and protective equipment manufacturer Ansell (ASX: ANN) saw its shares surge 17 per cent this morning after reaffirming earnings guidance and noting "very strong demand" for its AlphaTec range. The company explains that despite the unprecedented uncertainties and implications from the unknown extent of the Covid-...

Myer stores closed, 10,000 staff stood down

Department store Myer (ASX: MYR) is the latest retailer to shut down in the face of strict gathering restrictions and government advice regarding Covid-19. To protect the wellbeing of customers, team members and the broader community, Myer will close all stores from the close of business on Sunday 29 March for an initial period of four weeks...

Rex rescued by $198 million government assistance package

Australia's regional airlines will be kept in the sky after the Federal Government announced a $198 million Regional Air Network Assistance Package. The new funding brings the total amount of money committed to the Australian aviation industry to $1 billion and will ensure regional airlines can continue to deliver critical services du...

Woolworths Group to recruit 20,000 extra staff

Australia's largest retailer is going on an aggressive recruitment drive in a bid to meet "unprecedented demand" for food and drinks. Woolworths Group (ASX: WOW) has today announced plans to hire up to 20,000 new roles across its supermarkets, e-commerce, supply chain and drinks businesses in Australia over the next mon...

S&P downgrades rating for "fundamentally well managed" Virgin Australia

Virgin Australia (ASX: VAH) has received its second credit rating downgrade in almost as many weeks, with Standard & Poor's (S&P) expecting a cut to the airline's variable costs will not be enough to offset its collapse in revenue. A decision to cut domestic capacity by 90 per cent and suspend subsidiary Tigerair have...

Adairs, Review, Black Pepper and JETS Swimwear to shut down bricks & mortar stores

More retailers have announced store closures in the face of lower in-store foot traffic and Covid-19 social distancing requirements. Adairs (ASX: ADH) will temporarily close all of its Australian stores from close of trade on Sunday 29 March 2020. This follows the group's decision to shut down its six Adairs stores in New Zealand ...

Retail Food Group cuts working hours, stands down staff

A strong performance from bakeries and pizza stores has not been enough to prop up the franchise network of Retail Food Group (ASX: RFG) from depressed sales due to Covid-19. The company announced this morning it would be consulting with personnel to either stand down or reduce the working hours of the majority of staff. RFG note...

Kathmandu to close Australian retail network

Following in the footsteps of fellow listed retail groups Kathmandu (ASX: KMD) will be shutting down its Australian store network from 5pm today. Kathmandu, which also owns surf brand Rip Curl and footwear retailer Oboz, says the closures are the result of social distancing measures imposed by the Government. As such, retail store and...

Administrators to close all Colette by Colette stores

Voluntary administrators steering the fortunes of retailer Colette by Colette Hayman (CBCH) have opted to close the company's remaining 93 stores in Australia, putting health first in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The closures will affect 210 permanent staff as well as casuals, who were all advised today that business would ...

Bauer Media's $40m Pacific Magazines acquisition greenlit by watchdog

Bauer Media's proposed $40 million acquisition of Seven West Media (ASX: SWM) owned Pacific Magazines has received regulatory approval from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). The ACCC has decided the merger of the two businesses is not likely to substantially lessen competition in the magazine market. In De...

6,000 Flight Centre staff stood down, 35 per cent of stores to close globally

Travel agency Flight Centre (ASX: FLT) will stand down 30 per cent of its global workforce, including 3,800 Australian employees, as the tourism sector languishes in limbo. Covid-19 has had a dramatic effect on the global tourism sector, with many countries closing borders to help slow the spread of the coronavirus. Flight Centre has ...

Lovisa closes all stores in Australia, NZ and South Africa

Jewellery retailer Lovisa (ASX: LOV) has now closed the majority of its 400 stores worldwide in response to the government's containment measures against Covid-19. The company announced today it had temporarily closed all its stores in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The move follows decisions in France, Sp...

Guidance withdrawn at AMP, Dexus Property Group

Financial services giant AMP (ASX: AMP) and commercial and industrial property owner Dexus Property Group (ASX: DXS) are the latest ASX100 companies to withdraw their guidance due to uncertainty surrounding Covid-19. In a release today, AMP explained its capital position and liquidity remained strong while its three-year transformational ...

InvoCare shares plunge on funeral limits

Funeral home operator InvoCare (ASX: IVC) is dead set on not letting last night's new social distancing measures be the nail in the coffin for business. As part of the government's wide-reaching restrictions, funerals will not be allowed unless there are no more than 10 people in attendance and only one person per four square metr...