Retail sales fall but building approvals rise: Midday Roundup

Data out of the Australian Bureau of Statistics has been mixed this morning, with retail sales reporting a shock fall, while building approvals have surprised on the upside.

The ABS said retail sales fell by 0.5% in March to a seasonally adjusted $20.46 billion, following an upwardly revised increase of 0.8% the previous month.

Economists had expected a rise of between 0.5% and 0.8% for the month.

The figures showed department stores bore the brunt of the decrease, with sales falling 3% for the quarter, while food retailing dropped 0.4%.

But in the building sector, approvals rose a better-than-expected 9.1% in March, after a fall the previous month, with the total value of buildings approved soaring 20.8%. For the year, however, they were down 18.1%.

Economists had tipped a 5% increase for March.

“Widespread flooding in the eastern states, particularly Queensland, and other recent natural disasters have not adversely affected participation by providers in the Building Approvals collection or the quality of estimates in this release,” the ABS said.

“However, these events may have had an impact on the number of approved dwellings and the value of approved work in March 2011.”

Victoria, which recorded strong new home growth last year, has continued its solid run, with dwelling approvals skyrocketing 26.8%. Approvals in New South Wales rose 8.5%, while Western Australia recorded a 3.4% increase.

South Australia, on the other hand, reported a 22.5% drop.

Residential approval grew 3.9%, while non-residential approval soared 47.6%.

News Corp announces joint venture with car dealers

Media giant News Corp has announced it will establish a joint venture with car dealer groups to strengthen car sales website carsguide.com.au.

The company will be owned by News, and have three News representatives on its board. Automotive Holdings Group Ltd, A.P Eagers Group and Trivett Group will also have members on the board.

News Corp chairman John Hartigan has described the deal as a “transformational deal for Carsguide and the industry.”

“This strategic alliance of Australia’s largest print and online automotive brand, and the biggest dealer groups in the country will provide serious, and much needed, competition to the category.”

NAB records 21.7% rise in first-half profit

NAB has recorded a 21.7% rise in first-half cash profit to $2.67 billion, exceeding analysts’ expectation of a $2.5 billion result.

The bank said net profit attributable to shareholders rose by 15.9% to $2.43 billion, while total cash earnings increased to $2.67 billion.

Chief executive Cameron Clyne said there were several positive notes regarding the Australian economy, and said there are early signs businesses are beginning to invest.

Clyne also said there are initial signs that the strategy of keeping interest rates low, cutting fees and its marketing campaign are beginning to pay off.

“This result is a sign that there is some momentum in that strategy,” he said.

Clyne also said there were no financial effects from the company’s technical glitch last November, when customers were unable to access their funds online. He also said he was pleased with how NAB responded.

Australian shares open flat after weak Wall Street

The Australian sharemarket has opened flat this morning after Wall Street recorded a third consecutive fall in stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 0.01 points or 0% to 4740.1 at 12.00 AEST, while the Australian dollar has continued to fall to $US1.07.

AMP shares lost 0.95% to $5.24, as NAB shares gained 1.93% to $26.90 after it released a bumper first half profit. Commonwealth Bank shares lost 0.47% to $52.42 as ANZ lost 0.55% to $23.32.

Facebook and Google looking at Skype for tie-in deal

Social networking giant Facebook and internet search giant Google are both looking at Skype regarding a tie-in deal, according to a new report from Reuters.

The report claims both companies are examining the VoIP company separately, while Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has been involved in internal discussions.

The deals pin Skype at a valuation of between $US3-4 billion.