BRIEFS
Spark rises
Power sector investor Spark Infrastructure has flagged a higher dividend for 2013 as it continues to search for expansion opportunities. The 2013 dividend forecast has been raised to 11¢ a share from the 10.5¢ declared for 2012, with the final dividend of 5.25¢ to be paid next month. Spark declared a 2012 net profit of $185 million, up from the loss of $47.9 million for 2011, which reflected hedging and actuarial losses.
FUEL
Prices soar
The average price of petrol has hit a 10-month high. The national unleaded fuel price rose by an average 3.4¢ a litre to 152¢ last week. "The national average price has risen by a staggering 13.4¢ a litre in just the past seven weeks," CommSec economist Savanth Sebastian said.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Class action
A class action against Vodafone will be launched on Tuesday, more than two years after it was first proposed by legal firm PiperAlderman. The proposed action stalled due to a lack of litigation funding, but funder LCM is expected to announce it will cover costs. Consumers complained after they were unable to get satisfactory reception and service on the Vodafone network in late 2010 and early 2011.
MERGERS
Pair in talks
Accounting firm WHK Group is considering a $320 million merger proposal from wealth management firm SFG Australia. As it posted a 22 per cent fall in first-half profit, WHK received an indicative offer from SFG that could create a merged entity with more than $17 billion in funds under management.
BANKING
Westpac glitch
Westpac's online and phone banking system was hit by a glitch preventing users from accessing their accounts. Just after 6pm on Monday, the bank's website and mobile banking app were telling users online banking was "currently unavailable". It is understood the problems were caused by delays in data processing.
Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…
The article reports Spark Infrastructure flagged a higher dividend for 2013, raising its dividend forecast to 11¢ a share (up from the 10.5¢ declared for 2012). Spark also declared a 2012 net profit of $185 million, a turnaround from a $47.9 million loss in 2011 that reflected hedging and actuarial losses.
According to the article, Spark’s final dividend is 5.25¢ a share and is scheduled to be paid next month.
The article says the national average unleaded fuel price rose by an average 3.4¢ a litre to 152¢ last week, reaching a 10‑month high. CommSec economist Savanth Sebastian was quoted noting the national average has risen by 13.4¢ a litre in the past seven weeks.
The article reports a class action against Vodafone is due to be launched on Tuesday, more than two years after it was first proposed by law firm Piper Alderman. The proposed action stalled previously because of a lack of litigation funding, but funder LCM is expected to announce it will cover costs. The complaints centre on unsatisfactory reception and service on Vodafone’s network in late 2010 and early 2011.
The article states accounting firm WHK Group is considering a $320 million merger proposal from wealth management firm SFG Australia. WHK reported a 22% fall in first‑half profit, and the indicative offer could create a merged entity with more than $17 billion in funds under management.
The article says Westpac’s website and mobile banking app were showing that online banking was “currently unavailable” just after 6pm on Monday. The disruption was understood to be caused by delays in data processing.
The article mentions Spark Infrastructure (dividend and profit update), Vodafone (class action and service complaints), WHK Group and SFG Australia (merger talks), Westpac (banking outage), law firm Piper Alderman, funder LCM, and CommSec economist Savanth Sebastian. These are the main organisations referenced for investors to monitor.
The article provides timely corporate and market developments — dividend guidance from Spark, rising petrol prices, Vodafone’s legal action, a possible WHK‑SFG merger, and a Westpac systems glitch. Everyday investors can note these factual updates as part of broader monitoring of company announcements, legal outcomes and operational risks that appear in market news.
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