Domestic Housing
"It is too early to say whether the changes in the economic environment for the residential housing sector will feed into construction and DIY activity in FY20, however there appears to be an improvement in the level of confidence in the network post the election." Market Statement, Metcash Ltd
"We expect a contraction in Residential markets, forecasting 150k to 160k approvals in FY20, however the market environment remains uncertain." Ross Taylor, CEO, Fletcher Building
Retail
"In Supermarkets, there has been a continued improvement in the sales trajectory of wholesale sales (excluding tobacco) through the first seven weeks of FY20." Market Statement, Metcash
"Where free shipping was once the barrier to online shopping, online shoppers are now focused on getting their items fast, they want more personalised experiences, more choice in how they receive their deliveries and simpler returns." Market Statement, Australia Post
“More brands would eventually have to pay attention to resellers. Nike, Adidas, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Rolex, whatever it is, they're certainly not ignoring marketplaces and are not naive to the fact that their distribution channels are evolving." Scott Cutler, CEO, StockX [Online retail marketplace]
Global Economy
"There are investors who think the outlook is sufficiently weak that they expect central banks right around the world to cut interest rates, but they are not worried about corporate profits or credit risk. I don't really understand that." Phillip Lowe, Governor, RBA
“What happened is things have changed since May 1, significantly. The global risk picture has changed.” Jerome Powell, Chairman, US Federal Reserve
"The broader RV industry wholesale shipments have declined due to dealers reducing their levels of inventory and macroeconomic noise weighs on consumers, especially as it pertains to consumer discretionary products." Michael Happe, CEO, Winnebago Industries Inc
"I would describe the [macro] environment as sluggish as evidenced by central banks around the world debating on whether they cut rates, which undoubtedly they will towards the end of this calendar year, which should be the right thing to do." Gary Burnison, CEO, Korn Ferry [Global Management Consulting Group]
Domestic Economy
"Recent reductions in interest rates, improving credit availability, stable tax policies and first homeowner support have boosted hopes for an improvement in consumer confidence and demand for housing. The timing of any positive impact is difficult to predict." Market Announcement, CSR Ltd
Technology
"The problem is that it took 10 years between the time that the NBN was envisaged in 2009 and now, so the rest of the world has bypassed us ... It is going to take us another five to 10 years to actually get rid of the damage, and it will cost another $20 billion or $30 billion in order to get where we actually need to be.” David Soldani, Chief Technology Officer, Huawei Australia
Finance
“We’ve been talking about Facebook and Amazon and the others since 2012, knowing full well they would get into banking. We always knew they would get into payments and processing and that would be the start … then lending from there.” David Duffy, CEO, CYBG Plc
"We are growing our core credit, debit, prepaid and commercial products and working towards the vision where you can pay through whatever device you like, your phone, your personal assistant, your fridge, your card, your car, wherever you like, whenever you like." Ajay Banga, CEO, Mastercard Inc
Media
"Put simply, it is more risky and more expensive to do journalism that makes a real difference in this country." Hugh Marks, CEO, Nine Entertainment Co
Resources & Energy
“Gas consumers in Australia now pay as much for gas as our Asian neighbours who have no local gas reserves. This market inequity greatly hinders all parts of manufacturing. State and federal governments should be accessing the significant gas reserves in NSW and Victoria that do not require extensive investment in pipeline networks." John Gillam, Chairman, CSR
"If you look at the output of the nuclear industry, and if you consider its future relative to other technologies, it looks awfully good relative to some of the other potential technologies and therefore it shouldn't be excluded from consideration." Stephen Anthony, Chief Economist, Industry Super Australia
"The moment the [gas] market is adequately supplied there [should be] no controls, then let the market operate, but right now you cannot say the market is operating because the domestic supply was drained in a way that affected all of the Australian economy in a negative way." Alberto Calderon, CEO, Orica Ltd