Afternoon Report | ASX down 0.5pc
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Welcome to the Fear and Greed Business News Afternoon Report for Wednesday, the 12th of August, 2026. I'm Michael Thompson, and every afternoon, we've got the five stories that happened today that you need to know about.
Why did the ASX 200 close 0.5% lower and what does Commonwealth Bank’s record profit mean for investors?
Let's go with story number one. The S&P ASX 200 closed 0.5% lower today to... 9,209 points. The headline result really was Commonwealth Bank's record full-year profit of almost $11 billion. The country's biggest bank and second biggest company closed 0.6% lower today. We'll take a much closer look at the result tomorrow morning on Fear and Greed, including an interview with Chief Executive Matt Common. Elsewhere on the Bourse, the best performers were the utilities and the tech stocks. Defensive stocks did pretty well today.
How is AGL Energy’s earnings outlook affected by lower electricity prices and higher gas costs?
CSL, Telstra, Transurban, Woolies and Coles were both off more than 1%. The worst performing sector though today was real estate. On to story number two, AGL Energy has warned that earnings could fall amid lower wholesale electricity prices and higher gas costs. The country's biggest electricity generator posted a huge jump in statutory profit thanks to asset sales, but its underlying result actually fell back slightly. Investors seem to welcome the result though today, pushing up AGL's share price by 5.5%. The group's financial dividend of $0.26 a share took the full year payout to $0.50 a share, which is 53% of underlying profit, which is not exactly super generous. Right. AGL chief executive Damian Nix said the company's integrated business from electricity generation to retailing, quote, helped mitigate the impact of softer market conditions.
What government support is being planned for the Tomago aluminium smelter and why is it critical for jobs?
Nix also said that AGL had started discussions with a range of potential capital partners for the development of more than two gigawatts of renewables projects in its pipeline. Story number three, Australia's biggest aluminium smelter is set to receive a major government bailout aimed at keeping the plant open and safeguarding more than 1,000 jobs. Tomago Aluminium near Newcastle has warned that it could close when its existing power contract expires in 2028 with its electricity costs increasing. set to double. We've known that for a while. This smelter is the single biggest electricity user in New South Wales, consuming more than 10% of the state's power. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, New South Wales Premier Chris Minns are expected to announce a multi-year support package tomorrow.
The cost of this isn't yet known, but an option that had been previously considered was a 10-year deal providing discounted electricity, perhaps through a Commonwealth-owned company like Snowy Hydro. Tomago is majority owned by Rio Tinto, produces up to 590,000 tons of aluminium a year.
Why did Premier Investments cut its earnings guidance and what impact did it have on its share price?
Story number four, a bit of other corporate news around today. Billionaire Solomon Liu's Premier Investments has cut its earnings guidance. It has closed its Peter Alexander stores in the UK after just two years. Bad news if you're shopping for PJs in London. Premier Investments, which also owns children's stationery chain Smiggle, blamed the trading hit on the grim economic environment in Australia, which has gotten worse over the last few months. Its share price fell 10.5%. On the flip side, Bravura Solutions, which provides software platforms to the wealth management super sectors, has posted a near 50% jump in net profit for the full year ended June 30, despite a 10% drop in revenue share price today.
For Bravura, it was up almost 11%. And finally, story number five, an update on a story that I mentioned yesterday.
What secret aircraft swap did Donald Trump confirm after the NATO summit and why was it necessary?
US President Donald Trump has confirmed that he was secretly moved onto another aircraft as he left the NATO summit in Turkey last month because of a possible threat from Iran. Trump appeared to board Air Force One in front of cameras, but reports say that he was then taken off the other side of the plane using a catering truck, secretly transferred to a smaller military aircraft. US officials told CBS News that there was a credible Iranian threat to fire a missile at the president's plane. Journalists and some White House staff continued on the original aircraft without knowing Trump was actually no longer on board.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:03–0:13
2
Why did the ASX 200 close 0.5% lower and what does Commonwealth Bank’s record profit mean for investors?
0:13–0:46
3
How is AGL Energy’s earnings outlook affected by lower electricity prices and higher gas costs?
0:46–1:41
4
What government support is being planned for the Tomago aluminium smelter and why is it critical for jobs?
1:41–2:42
5
Why did Premier Investments cut its earnings guidance and what impact did it have on its share price?
2:42–3:31
6
What secret aircraft swap did Donald Trump confirm after the NATO summit and why was it necessary?
3:31–4:27
Speakers
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