Liberal MP Tony Smith elected speaker; JB Hi-Fi profits jump 6.4% to $136 million

Victorian Liberal MP Tony Smith has been elected unopposed as the speaker of the House of Representatives after Bronwyn Bishop was forced to resign.

After being elected Smith told MPs he wanted to see a better parliament, The Australian reports.

“I want to say at the outset I will give a fair go to all on the floor of this chamber but, in return, I do expect a level of discourse that reflects that,” Smith said.

“Often people say parliament shouldn’t be robust; it should. But it needn’t be rude and it needn’t be loud, and that is something I’d like to see improved. I can’t do that [alone] but together we all can.”

The government was forced to elect a new speaker after Bronwyn Bishop stood down after a public outcry over billing taxpayers $5000 to take a helicopter from Melbourne to Geelong to attend a political fundraiser.

JB Hi-Fi profits jump 6.4% to $136 million

Electronics retailer JB Hi-Fi has revealed a record net profit after tax of $136.5 million, up from 6.4% in the previous corresponding period.

The company’s chief executive, Richard Murray, said the strong results were in part due to the government’s $2000 instant asset write-off.

“Trading in June was particularly strong as we cycled a soft trading period in the prior year and enjoyed the benefits of solid sales growth assisted by the small business tax incentives,” Murray said.

This morning JB Hi-Fi shares surged by almost 10% after the company’s announcement beat investors’ expectations.

In the next year the retailer plans to open six new stores and reap in $3.85 billion worth of sales.

Shares up on open

Aussie shares have remained flat this morning as investors turn their attention to company results.

Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets, said the local share market’s performance this week will partly hinge on the more than 30 top 200 companies set to inform investors of their performance.

“As the US reporting season draws to a close the Australian season gets into full swing this week,” McCarthy said.

“Although macro factors such as a likely US rate rise, poor China data and weaker commodity prices will weigh initially, investor focus is likely to narrow on the primary evidence of corporate health – earnings reports.”

The S&P/ASX200 benchmark was up 0.49%, rising 27.2 points to 5502. points at 11.51am AEST. On Saturday, the Dow Jones closed down 0.27%, falling 46.37 points to 17,373.38.