John Dagge August 27, 2012 Herald Sun CALTEX Australia has reported a 38 per cent drop in net profit after being hit with $30 million in crude and inventory losses. Net profit after tax fell from $270 million to $167 million in the year to June on the back of lower oil prices, the company announced today. Profits on a replacement cost basis, which strips out the effect of changes in the world oil price, rose from $113 million to $197 million over the same period due to better margins from its refinery and transport fuel operations as well as marketing of petrol. The result was in line with Caltex’s recent forecast of a first-half net profit of between $185 million and $205 million. The company declared a fully franked interim dividend of 17 cents per share. In July Caltex announced it would transform its Sydney oil refinery at Kurnell…

Eli Greenblat August 27, 2012 The Age Petrol pumps are regular features of Costco’s American stores. US RETAILER Costco is seeking to break into Australia’s $15 billion-plus discount petrol business, currently dominated by Woolworths and Coles, by selling its own heavily reduced fuel at prices below those offered via popular supermarket shopper-docket schemes. Costco, which operates a warehouse store in each of Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra, has requested room to build petrol stations at a second store slated for Sydney and for its first in Brisbane, and is awaiting council approval on both. If the petrol outlets are approved, it will be the first time Costco can offer petrol to its local members along with its range of drastically discounted food, liquor, clothing and electrical products that has made its warehouse-style outlets so popular since they arrived in Australia three years ago. ”If you can sell vegemite at a cheaper…

Laura Speranza August 26, 2012 The Sunday Telegraph TAKE a closer look at your bottle of “pure” water: it’s probably sourced from the tap. Millions of unsuspecting customers are buying filtered tap water and boiled rainwater at massive mark-ups of more than 180,000 per cent. Several manufacturers admit they fill their bottles from the Sydney Water mains after applying filtration and purification procedures – but they insist customers know their water is not sourced from a mineral spring, and are happy to pay for the convenience of having it in a plastic bottle. The major brands that describe themselves as “spring” or “mineral” water are genuine natural spring water, including Mount Franklin, Fiji Water, Pump and the Coles and Woolworths homebrands. But supermarket and convenience stores stock brands that describe themselves as “purified” or “organic” and are in fact the same water available in every home for less than one…

CSD Staff Aug 24, 2012 FDA “failed to present any data” showing that the proposed graphic warnings “will accomplish the agency’s stated objective of reducing smoking rates,” says U.S. Circuit Judge. Tobacco companies won a challenge to U.S. rules requiring that cigarette packaging and advertisements display graphic images, Businessweek reported. Commonwealth Brands Inc., Liggett Group LLC and Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co. sued the FDA last year, saying the mandate for graphic cigarette packages, cartons and advertising violated the First Amendment. In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington today ruled that Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations mandating visual-image warnings of smoking’s health risks violate the tobacco companies’ free speech rights. FDA “failed to present any data” showing that the proposed graphic warnings “will accomplish the agency’s stated objective of reducing smoking rates,” U.S. Circuit Judge Janice Rogers Brown wrote in her majority opinion.“The First Amendment…

Don Longo Aug 23, 2012 CSNews JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Nearly two-thirds of convenience store operators expect to see their foodservice sales increase this year compared to 2011, according to the results of Convenience Store News’ exclusive 2012 Foodservice Study. Conversely, only about 5 percent expect their foodservice sales to decline in 2012, and about 32 percent forecast that their foodservice sales will at least remain the same. In terms of profitability, a similar percentage (62 percent) expect to pocket increased profits from their foodservice operations this year, and another 30 percent expect to match their 2011 profits in the foodservice category. CSNews’ annual Foodservice Study was conducted in May and builds on the data collected for the 2012 CSNews Industry Report by collecting more in-depth foodservice category information and asking retailers to review how their current year’s sales are tracking, as well as their 2011 performance. As reported in…

Jane Harper Herald Sun August 24, 2012 RETAIL giant Woolworths says charges around the sale of the Dick Smith electronics business have dragged net profit for the year down 14.5 per cent. The company today reported profit of $1.816 billion for the year to June 24, including a $420 million restructure provision and impairment loss for the Dick Smith chain. Excluding the impact of the Dick Smith loss, net profit was $2.2 billion, up 3.6 per cent on last year. Woolworths said the sale process of the remaining 348 Dick Smith stores in Australia and New Zealand was continuing. The group’s Australian supermarkets business chalked up $2.94 billion in earnings before interest and tax, up 5.3 per cent from last year. Sales revenue rose to $55.1 billion, was up 4.8 per cent from $52.6 billion in the previous year. Sales were up across all the company’s divisions, made up of…