Today it set out its ‘Master Plan’ looking forward to a time (2047) when double the number of passengers – some 38 million a year – use the facility, and air cargo is tipped to increase by 40%.

But it also admitted plans for a second runway – previously due to be operational by 2028 – would be pushed out by at least a decade.

Auckland Airport’s chief strategic planning officer Mary-Liz Tuck said the ‘trigger point’ had been revised thanks to operational and airfield efficiency measures.

“Building another runway at AKL is part of our planning roadmap and our current airfield investments, including a major airfield expansion to the north of the international terminal and a consolidated cargo precinct alongside, are being built with this in mind,” she said.

“Construction of a second runway is a big commitment and one that we will only consider if it is in the best interests of New Zealand.

“First, we will fully explore all the ways we can ensure our current airfield operates as efficiently as possible.

“If the existing runway cannot provide the capacity New Zealand requires, then we will commence consultation with airlines on the second runway.”

The Master Plan was last updated in 2014 and Ms Tuck says a lot has changed since then.

“When you’re considering how to plan a well-functioning airport across several decades you need to look beyond the short-term cycles, by using projected passenger volumes over the long run – this is a fundamental part of long-term airport planning,” she said.

The Master Plan explores terminal integration, that second runway and what a future mass rapid transport corridor looks like. It also goes into sustainability, innovation and community wellbeing.

“It is an evolution, building on previous plans, while ensuring we are responding to what New Zealand needs from its main international gateway not just for today, but well into the future,” Ms Tuck said.

“While the Master Plan guides our investment decisions, it is not a detailed construction or capital plan.

“It is about making sure we’re building appropriately today with the future of the airport in mind.

“At its heart, it is a blueprint that makes sure we are building the right thing at the right time in the right place.

“It is not a commitment to build certain assets, nor does it set out the business case for constructing infrastructure, but lays out the direction of development for the airport.”

Ms Tuck said the plan laid out ‘important discussions we need to have ahead of making investment decisions’.

AIA last traded at $7.51 and has a market cap around $12.7 million.

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The latter already holds a 68.53% stake in Engenco and is offering 30.5 cents for each Engenco share; a premium of 45.2% to the price at March 6’s end of trade.

However, after the offer was announced, Engenco’s board published its own advice: Saying shareholders should sit tight until further information was offered, with Engenco set to release a Target statement in response.

The company said an ‘Independent Board Committee’ had been established from shareholders independent of Elphinstone. Baker McKenzie was appointed as legal advisor.

A recommendation from independent directors, together with an Independent Expert’s Report, will be included in the Target Statement; shareholders have been advised to await this before taking any steps concerning the offer.

Engenco specialises in providing products and solutions for transportation, with segments including ‘Drivetrain,’ which offers technical services to industries like mining, oil and gas, rail, defense, and marine, and ‘Convair,’ which manufactures bulk pneumatic road tankers and mobile silos for carrying and storing dry bulk materials.

EGN‘s share price was last 29.5 cents – a rise of 40% since market open.

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This builds on previous work done since November 2023 in collaboration with the Parklife Metro Consortium – which will be delivering the SSTOM package – to provide engineering surveying services for up to three new metro train stations.

For Veris, these new Sydney works will focus on the Linewide package, and are expected to be completed by the end of 2025.

There is also a subsequent pipeline of activity which will continue until April 2027.

Parklife, whose consortium includes Plenary, WeBuild, Siemens, and RATP Dev, has a long-term contract to operate and maintain Sydney Metro for the next 15 years, and Veris intends to be part of this as it strengthens its relationship with the consortium.

“We are delighted to extend our partnership with the Parklife Metro Consortium on the Western Sydney Airport project,” managing director and CEO Michael Shirley said after sharing the news.

“These new contracts across our multi-disciplinary service offering underscore the quality of work delivered by our team and highlight our ability to leverage strong relationships with key clients into additional opportunities.

“This is a testament to Veris’ strategic focus on high-value, multi-disciplinary projects that align with our expertise and strengthen our position as a trusted partner in delivering Australia’s most important infrastructure projects.”

Veris has been trading at 5.7 cents.

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The company’s revenue for the period was also higher – by 9% – coming in at $12.13B, and while Qantas did not announce of pay any dividends during this period, the board said it would announce a base dividend of $250 million, paid out on the basis of an interim dividend of 16.5 cents per share (cps).

Growth in international operations meant that Qantas had a strong half year for passenger revenue, which grew 9%, while loyalty programs also continued to perform strongly.

A key focus for Qantas during the half year period was the upgrading of its fleet: with 16 aircraft delivered, including 6 new A321LRs, 2 new A320neos, 3 new A220-300s, 2 mid-life A319-100s and 3 mid-life Q400s.

Also added were 3 E190s brought online through Qantas’ wet lease arrangements with Alliance Airlines.

CEO Vanessa Hudson said these and other changes would provide a strong foundation going forward.

“Having a strong business means we can invest in our customers and our people, including our largest ever fleet renewal and cabin overhaul programs,” she said.

“Qantas and Jetstar made travel possible for more Australians, carrying 28 million customers, with around one third of Jetstar customers travelling for under $100 at a time of ongoing cost of living pressures.”

Qantas traded higher after this news, and by 16:23 AEDT, they were trading at $9.42 – a rise of 5.96% since the market opened.

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The figure of $2.55B is inclusive of hedging and gross carbon costs.

In its market update for October, Qantas told investors demand for both its main carrier and also Jetstar remained solid, and that the latter was going beyond previous expectations based on ‘stronger than expected travel demand.’ Demand for corporate travel continued strong, affecting Qantas Domestic’s business.

In terms of RASK (revenue per available seat kilometre), this was expected to increase three to 5% in the first half of the 2025 fiscal year compared to the previous corresponding period for Qantas as a whole, though the RASK figure for international travel was still predicted to decrease between seven to 10%.

Earnings (underlying EBIT) for the Qantas Loyalty business were expected to show at least 10% growth throughout the whole FY25; the company noted the launch of Classic Plus Flight Rewards.

However, fair value changes from the launch would likely result in lower earnings in the first half of the year relative to the prior year.

Qantas also announced it had provided 27,000 employees with ‘thank-you’ payments for their contribution to the company, with this being recognised in a total $28 million cost during H1 FY25.

Qantas shares moved up one the news, and at 12:42 AEDT, they were trading at $8.01 – a rise of 1.26% since the market opened.

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The facility’s function will be the delivery of a cost effective and fit for purpose infrastructuresolution for the receival, materials handling, and ship loading of bulk commodities ontotranshipping vessels.

Part of the memo signed this week will include the intention for this SPV to liaise with owners of bulk commodity projects in the West Pilbara, offering them a complete pit to customer supply chain solution.

As part of the latter, Norden, a subsidiary of Danish company Dampskibsselskabet NORDEN A/S, will provide transhipping on behalf of the SPV while Macro will run the pit to port mining services.

Macro managing director Simon Rushton declared the agreement is expected to provide a potentially transformative project for the region.

“They (Norden) have a seriously impressive history of providing safe, reliable and innovative marine transport solutions around the world and for Macro to be able to leverage their experience and expertise as a partner in delivering a bespoke export solution that can be used for both Macro products and that of third party users is a fantastic outcome,” he said.

“Securing access to a cost effective and sustainable export solution for Macro’s West Pilbaraprojects has been a key focus for me since joining the company.

“It became readily apparent there is an immediate need for a fit for purpose, truly multi-user export facility to service the West Pilbara and for Macro to secure the rights in partnership to deliver such a facility is entirely consistent with our stated intention to build Macro into a diversified mining and mining services business.

“The formation of this strategic partnership between Macro and NORDEN will mark a significant milestone in advancing our West Pilbara projects and underscores our commitment to innovative and sustainable development.”

Investors appeared to be impressed by the news, and at 12:22 AEDT, shares in Macro were trading at 1.9 cents – a rise of 5.55% since the market opened.

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Hoonigans – formerly known as Wheel Bros LLC – is in the process of reorganising and working its way through the bankruptcy court system, and on September 16, requested court approval of its asset sale to ARB subsidiary ORW USA Inc.

The court did not receive any competing offers to this arrangement prior to the objection deadline of October 1, and this result was augmented by the U.S Trustee’s decision not to oppose the 4 Wheel Parts Sale process.

Through the arrangement between Hoonigans and ORW, the latter would also be assigned certain executory contracts and unexpired leases.

The next major stage in the process is the court sale hearing – scheduled for October 15 – at which ARB is anticipating approval of the proposed asset sale, with the transaction to be completed within days of such an announcement.

Currently, ORW and Hoonigan are in the process of addressing implementation questions from landlords and contract counterparties, with this also to be resolved shortly.

ARB will also be hosting its Annual General Meeting on October 17, with updates to be provided to investors then.

ARB shares moved up on the news, and at 10:32 AEDT, they were trading at $44.29 – a rise of 1.56% since the market opened.

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The placement – which priced shares at $6.95 each – was announced as having been successful the very next day, given strong support.

According to the retail offer, eligible investors will be able to apply for up to NZ$150,000/A$45,000 worth of AIA shares, with the closing date set at October 4.

Chair of AIA Dr Patrick Strange said the planned equity raising would provide the airport with a strong funding basis going forward.

“The Retail Offer is part of Auckland Airport’s equity raising initiative announced on 16 September 2024, the first component of which was a placement of Shares to institutional shareholders and investors (Placement) that closed on 17 September 2024 and successfully raised NZ$1,200 million at a price of NZ$6.95 per Share,” he said.

“Auckland Airport is seeking to raise up to NZ$200 million under the Retail Offer, with the ability to accept oversubscriptions at its sole discretion.

“The proceeds of the equity raise will initially reduce net debt, repay the NZ$150 million October 2024 bond maturity, as well as a further NZ$100 million of unhedged drawn facilities, and provide flexibility to fund Auckland Airport’s planned capital investment programme over PSE4 and PSE5 whilst maintaining its A- S&P credit rating and dividend policy.”

AIA has been trading at $6.78

The decision on Joyce’s pay was guided largely by Qantas’ Governance Review – kicked off in October 2023 and announced today – which aimed to scrutinise the board’s decision-making and governance processes, much of which had been fodder for the news and business media in Australia and overseas in the previous year.

The Review claimed that no deliberate wrongdoing was evident, however it was acknowledged that ‘mistakes were made by the Board and management which contributed to the Group’s significant reputational and customer service issues’.

In addition to Mr Joyce’s renumeration downgrade – which was for the 2023 Financial Year – short term incentives for ‘affected current and former senior executives’ would fall by 33%, the board decided.

This meant the total hit to Qantas executives in terms of short-term incentives for FY 2023 would reach around $4.1 million.

While the board noted the ‘individual and collective accountability of members of the Group Management Committee’, it placed most of the blame on Joyce as CEO at the time, with this explaining the forfeiture of the shares held on his behalf as part of the 2021-2023 Long Term Incentive Plan (LTIP), vested in August 2023.

The Review – led by business adviser Tom Saar – delivered 32 recommendations on how Qantas governance could be improved, and the board noted that several of these were already underway.

These included tightened protocols for the approval of share trading by top executives, amendments to its renumeration framework, and the enhancement of board consultation and approval required in relation to issues of importance to stakeholders and the wider community.

Qantas is also set to gain a new chairman, following the retirement of Richard Goyder – first announced in October last year – replaced by John Mullen, who said the Review had provided stronger direction for the company under new CEO Vanessa Hudson.

“It’s important that the Board understands what went wrong and learns from the mistakes of the past as it’s clear that we let Australians down,” Mr Mullen said.

“As the national carrier it is our duty to make sure we always act in the best interest of stakeholders and hold ourselves to the highest level of accountability.

“Vanessa and her new management team have made positive progress towards delivering better outcomes for customers and employees, but there is still a significant amount of work to be done to rebuild the trust of all stakeholders.”

Qantas shares saw a fall on Thursday, and at 12:19 AEST, were trading at $5.87, a drop of 1.68% since the market opened.

Carly Holdings is offering a new way for car dealers to subscribe any of their vehicles to drivers without the need to establish their own subscription business. It’s expanded its service suite with CarlyNow, a direct-to-dealership car subscription service.

Carly’s CEO, Chris Noone joins me now. Welcome, Chris.

Chris Noone:

Thanks very much.

Julia Seymour:

Now Chris, firstly, how does Carly currently work with car dealers?

Chris Noone:

So we work with a number of automotive dealers throughout Australia. The way we work with them currently is that the automotive dealer will provide a list of cars to us. We will display them on our website. We will do the marketing. We will find the subscribers for the vehicles, collect the payments, do the verification checks, apply the insurance to the vehicle, and then we’ll let the dealer know that the customer is coming to collect that vehicle.

Now, typically, that customer will have the vehicle on average for around five and a half months. The dealer is responsible for preparing the car and handing it over to the customer, and then we manage the car while it’s on the road with the customer. We do the fleet management. We look after any insurance issues. We organise servicing as well. So that’s the current way that we operate with dealers. They have to dedicate a fleet of vehicles to our service, and we essentially do the marketing for those. That’s a little bit different to what we’re announcing with our new product.

Julia Seymour:

So Chris, tell us about your new product, CarlyNow.

Chris Noone:

So we announced CarlyNow a couple of weeks ago at the Australian Automotive Dealer Association Conference in Sydney, which was attended by over 800 automotive dealers. We announced this product because we wanted a simpler way for car dealers to meet their customers’ needs. So CarlyNow is an online app and it enables dealers to do their own subscriptions on their own vehicles. Essentially, it allows them to create a subscription on the fly by leveraging our technology, our platform, our services, our payment infrastructure, our ID verification services, and also our fleet management services as well. So the typical situation is that a customer could be talking to the dealer right now, they could be saying, oh, I’m not sure if I want to buy a car. Or they might have actually placed an order for a car, but it will take six months to be delivered.

With CarlyNow, the dealer can actually use CarlyNow to actually subscribe any other vehicle to that customer. So let’s say the customer’s ordered the blue car that will be available in six months. They can say, great, that vehicle’s ordered. We’ll see you in six months of that vehicle. In the meantime, we’ll give you exactly the same car, but it’s in red. We know it’s not your ideal colour, but we’ll give you that car. We’ll subscribe it to you through CarlyNow. And the customer is happy because they’ve got a vehicle. The dealer is happy because they’ve met the needs of that customer and they’re also generating revenue from one of their vehicles as well. There are other opportunities where customers might be thinking, oh, I’m not quite ready to buy, maybe I will, maybe I won’t. So the dealer could say, well, why don’t we subscribe a certain vehicle to you for a few months? The other opportunity is electric vehicles where people are not really sure if an electric vehicle will suit their needs. Once again, they can enter the customer’s details into CarlyNow into the vehicle details, and we can create the subscription and all the protections and services that come with the whole CarlyNow product. So it allows the dealer to take advantage of an immediate opportunity, capture a customer, monetise them, and keep them happy.

Julia Seymour:

And how will this benefit Carly shareholders?

Chris Noone:

This gives us another string to our bow, and it also allows us to clip the ticket of our car dealers who are entering the subscription market. So we operate a direct model where we have our own fleet of cars that we subscribe to customers. We also provide services to other companies that have their own fleets, such as automotive dealers, automotive manufacturers, and also fleet management companies. So we have direct income, but we also have this other income where we’re supporting others to enter the subscription business. So essentially the benefit for our shareholders is that it’s a substantially increased revenue potential with very little cost for our business.

Julia Seymour:

And are you confident this will be a success?

Chris Noone:

Certainly am. We’ve had great feedback at the conference a few weeks ago. We’ve been testing it in the market for quite a while now, and it already leverages many of the services that we’ve already proven in the market. So with vehicle delivery delays still continuing, some people concerned about the economy and whether they should take out a loan or finance, or whether they want a more flexible option like subscription, we think there are many reasons that dealers will really jump on this product.

Julia Seymour:

Chris Noone, Carly Holdings CEO. Thank you for joining me today.

Chris Noone:

Thanks very much. Great to be here.

Only a few years ago, the subscription market — after generations stuck in the infancy of magazine and gym subscriptions — began to show signs of growing up. At first, subscribers were content to listen to Taylor Swift on Spotify, watch Frozen on Netflix, get their software freshly updated automatically, and maybe ride a scooter now and then.

But in recent times, the subscription business has had a massive growth spurt. These days people are relying on subscription services to provide their daily meals, cosmetics, razor blades and shaving gear, every type of alcohol, veterinary and medical services, and even toilet paper.

Into this burgeoning subscription-driven world, where instant gratification without long-term commitment is the new normal, comes Australia’s first flexible car subscription service.

Launched in March 2019, Carly is set to become an integral part of Australia’s Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) offering — participating in a global market expected to exceed US$230 billion (A$330 billion) by 2025.

Subscribers to Carly can choose their car make and model, and one monthly recurring payment covers all expenses, including insurance, registration, servicing and repairs. All the driver has to do is add fuel (or for EVs, plug-in).

Carly provides subscribers with the use of a car without the long-term burden of debt or ownership, offering a flexible alternative to finance or outright purchase.

So who would drive a Carly car? Quite a few people, it turns out.

A recent survey by Omnipoll revealed that 38 per cent of Australians would consider subscribing to a car rather than purchasing or leasing, and no less than 69 per cent of Gen Z and 50 per cent of Millennials indicated a preference for car subscription.

Carly CEO Chris Noone told The Market Herald that people turn to Carly for a broad range of reasons.

“Some are interested in trying different car makes and models before they buy — particularly those who are looking for reassurance before buying an EV. People who are in Australia for the medium term — think students or business travellers on contracts — also find the subscription model expedient,” he said.

“And then there are those who are all about convenience, who just want everything taken care of. A growing cohort of wise consumers is wary of taking on a car loan while there is talk of recession or increasing unemployment.”

Carly offers subscribers (and investors) a unique market niche, nestling in between car share users, who typically use the vehicle by the hour or day, rental customers who rent for one to 14 days, and vehicle owners, who commit for upwards of two years. The average Carly subscription is just over five and a half months.

The need for a reliable car subscription service has clearly convinced some significant automotive businesses, with SG Fleet (SGF), RACV and Turners Automotive (TRA) all taking significant shareholdings in the company.

The Carly board and executive team represent extensive experience in the automotive industry, with team members coming from Volkswagen, Hyundai, SG Fleet and Turners Automotive. Together, this team has formulated a unique hybrid supply model designed to efficiently expand the vehicle fleet regardless of market conditions.

The Hybrid Fleet Model allows the company to switch between an owned fleet (asset heavy) and a third-party owned fleet (asset light) approach depending on market conditions.

This flexibility allows the company to optimise the growth of the fleet according to business and market conditions, by relying more heavily on buying and financing when vehicles are in short supply (such as now due to COVID, Ukraine and microprocessor issues) and monetising vehicles owned by auto manufacturers, dealers and fleet management companies when subscription delivers a recurring revenue stream that is more attractive than discounting cars to sell.

This approach is all about maximising margins and ensuring fleet availability.

Mr Noone said at this stage, fleet growth was the company’s priority.

“We know that when we add cars to our fleet we can increase revenue quite quickly,” he said.

Mr Noone added that the company secured the funding necessary to expand the fleet in June 2022 and achieved impressive growth and that further asset finance facilities were being sought in 2023.

One of Carly’s major strengths going forward is the powerful industry partnerships the company has forged with some of the automotive industry’s heaviest hitters.

SG Fleet, Carly’s second-largest shareholder, is collaborating with the company on demand referral, as well as vehicle supply, while number three shareholder Turners Automotive Group utilises the Carly platform for its subscription business in New Zealand.

Partnerships or collaborative deals have been struck with Hyundai, Peugeot, Subaru and Genesis as well as Suttons, suppliers of new Mitsubishi, Renault, Kia, Subaru and Nissan vehicles, and Alto Group, which provides new Audi and Skoda vehicles.

Fleet operators such as Orix, Custom Fleet and Interleasing have provided near-new vehicles, while Driva — Australia’s leading car loan platform — provides referral customers.

With a raft of industry backers betting on Carly and the success of the car subscription market, it’s easy to get infected with the optimism that runs through Carly’s investor communications. But how are they actually going?

We’ve all had a tough couple of years, and growing an automotive company at a time when so many people were compelled to stay at home has been tough. But Carly actually prospered during this period, recording consecutive quarterly increases in revenue since launch in 2019 — and this growth continues today.

From the December 2021 to December 2022 quarters, Subscription Revenue surged by 72 per cent, while costs decreased overall.

In particular, Advertising and Marketing costs decreased by 56 per cent, despite the growth in revenue. Subscription revenue, as a portion of subscription transaction value, is at an all-time high of 60 per cent for the December 2022 quarter.

These results have been driven by Carly’s ability to buy cars to grow its fleet when many people are waiting up to 12 months for new car deliveries. Further, when Carly receives deliveries of new cars, it gets them on the road quickly, achieving a very high 87-per-cent fleet utilisation

Given the continued acquisition of vehicles and the apparent reliability of demand for the service, combined with the confidence the industry has in the company’s capacity to meet that demand, it’s difficult to see Carly doing anything other than continuing its accelerated trajectory for the foreseeable future.

The £121 million (A$211 million) purchase opens the door for Flight Centre to enter the United Kingdom and United States luxury travel markets through the Scott Dunn brand.

Flight Centre will fund the deal through the $180 million placement, along with $40 million of existing cash from its balance sheet. Eligible existing shareholders will be able to participate in a non-underwritten share purchase plan to raise up to a further $40 million.

Flight Centre Managing Director Graham Turner expressed his delight over the acquisition.

“The business ticks the main boxes that we have defined to play in the luxury segment: exceptional service/high quality, an authentic brand with desired benefits. It has a prestigious image, commands a premium price and is capable of inspiring deep connections with customers,” Mr Turner said.

Mr Turner also said Flight Centre would be able to help Scott Dunn achieve its intended objectives and “unlock a new era of growth”.

Flight Centre said it expected preliminary unaudited H1 2023 total transaction value (TTV) of $9.9 billion, group revenue of $1 billion and group underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $95 million.

Scott Dunn CEO Sonia Davies said the acquisition was an exciting growth opportunity for both parties.

“We are proud of how strong the Scott Dunn brand has become in the UK and now in the US and Singapore and of our commitments to being a responsible business,” Ms Davies said.

“We’re excited now to continue our journey and accelerate our growth with the Flight Centre Travel Group.”

The acquisition will help FLT diversify its northern hemisphere leisure footprint in line with the company’s strategic objectives of expanding in its core markets and developing a global luxury collection of travel brands.

Flight Centre called a trading halt ahead of the planned capital raise, but shares last traded at $15.83 on Monday afternoon.

The company last week announced it had used a $1.5 million asset finance facility secured in June to order the new vehicles, of which 80 per cent have been delivered and, according to the company, are highly utilised.

Delivery slots for 11 remaining vehicles have been allocated and are due to be delivered by the end of 2022.

The boosting of the company’s fleet resulted in a new record for average monthly subscription revenue of $151,000 per month for the October to November period.

This marks a 28 per cent increase in average monthly subscription revenue when compared to the September quarter this year and a 71 per cent increase compared to the December quarter of 2021.

Additionally, subscription revenue as a proportion of subscription transaction value increased to 59 per cent for the October to November period compared to 51 per cent in the prior reported period.

Carly said this metric would continue to increase as the size of its owned vehicle fleet increased.

In this vein, the company has placed forward orders for over 100 new vehicles in anticipation of securing additional asset finance facilities.

Subscription vehicle utilisation also reached 89 per cent in November, which was a monthly record for the business after posting 87 per cent in the September quarter.

Shares in CL8 closed 4.55 per cent lower at 2.1 cents on Tuesday afternoon.

It comes after the company signed a sale and purchase agreement in July to buy NJE, which is the FIFO service arm of Cobham Aviation, for $48 million.

“Rex will overlay this financial and operational prowess on NJE’s core strengths to transform it to be Australia’s premier FIFO operator,” Executive Chair Lim Kim Hai said.

“Resource companies all over Australia can now count on a modern, comfortable and environmentally-friendly fleet for their FIFO needs instead of relying on 30-year-old Fokker 100 aircraft used predominantly by the other operators.

“In anticipation of the surge in demand for NJE’s services, we are looking to lease immediately another two De Havilland Canada Dash 8-400 NextGen (NG) aircraft to add to its fleet.

“We will continue to invest in new aircraft and technology to grow the business, especially in Queensland where resource companies have been facing severe issues with capacity and reliability in recent years.”

At market close REX shares were unchanged at $1.32

Operating in Australia and New Zealand, Mojo Group is a motorcycle, scooter, ATV, electric motorcycle and genuine spare parts and accessories importer.

As part of the deal, Michael Poynton and Joshua Carter from Mojo Group will take on senior executive positions within MotorCycle, with Mr Poynton to also join the company’s board.

The $60 million acquisition price comprises nearly 11.54 million MotorCycle shares, which are escrowed for two years, $20 million in cash, and a deferred consideration of up to $10 million.

MotorCycle will fund the cash portion through an increase to its debt facility.

The acquisition is subject to shareholder approval and MotorCycle obtaining key contract and third-party consent.

“We believe the acquisition of the Mojo Group will present significant growth opportunities by introducing the importation and distribution of motorcycles, ATVs, and scooters (including electric models) into our existing product offering, increasing our warehouse capacity and expanding our distribution network,” MotorCycle Found and Managing Director David Ahmet said.

“In addition, MTO continues to explore other motorcycle franchise acquisition opportunities to increase its market share and geographic coverage in Australia.”

Shares in MotorCycle were up 14.8 per cent on the market and are trading at $2.48 at 3:52 pm AEST.

The company saw a 25 per cent increase to passenger numbers and a 38 per cent increase in revenue bookings compared to July.

It attributed most of the growth to its flights between Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

REX recently received its seventh Boeing 737-800NG, with discussions for a further two aircraft to be brought in executed.

Executive Chairman Lim Kim Hai said its key metrics continue to improve month-on-month in the new financial year.

“Our new partnerships with travel agency groups and corporate accounts are now starting to deliver the intended outcomes as reflected in August numbers,” he said.

“We can look forward to even stronger performance in the months ahead when the new arrangements are fully bedded down.”

Shares ended the day 0.37 per cent in the red to close at $1.35.

The multi billion-dollar company reported a significant $287.2 million net loss, however, this is a 33.7 per cent improvement on the $433.5 million loss in the prior corresponding period.

Like all companies within the same industry, the embattled travel stock has suffered the impact of COVID-19 which sparked worldwide lockdowns two-and-a-half years ago.

In its 40-year history, Flight Centre faced its toughest operating conditions, however, based on the past few months, the travel group could well be on its way to recovery.

While the company still reported an underlying loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of $183.1 million in FY22, this was well within its guidance range and was a smaller loss compared to both FY21 and FY20.

Revenue grew significantly over the year from $396 million in FY21 to $1 billion in FY22, representing a 154 per cent improvement.

By the fourth quarter of FY22, Flight Centre experienced a rapid recovery which was driven by a rebound in total transaction volumes (TTV) across both the leisure and corporate travel sectors as borders around the world started reopening and concerns around the virus started subsiding. In fact, TTV for the three months to June 30 alone topped TTV for the entire 2021 fiscal year.

“Since restrictions were relaxed or removed, demand has increased globally across both the leisure and corporate sectors as travellers have sought to reconnect with friends, family and key business contacts or to simply make up for lost travel time,” Chairman Gary Smith said.

TTV for the Leisure segment increased 197 per cent to $4.1 billion which was mainly recognised in the second half. TTV in the six months to June 30 was tracking at 68 per cent of gross monthly pre-covid levels.

As for its Corporate segment, TTV increased 158 per cent to $5.6 billion over the year, with $2.3 billion generated during the final quarter alone. The company said this TTV run-rate would, if extrapolated over the year to June 30, 2023, exceed the record $8.9 billion result achieved during FY19.

During the financial year, Flight Centre made a point to reduce costs so it could be in a position to invest in people, products and technology as trading conditions improved.

The business also raised in the order of $1.5 billion, initially through the market and then via two convertible notes. By the end of the year, Flight Centre had a global cash and investment portfolio of $1.3 billion and roughly $700 million in liquidity.

“After two years of unprecedented disruption to normal global travel patterns and othereveryday activities, we are pleased to start FY23 with a considerably brighter outlook,” CEO Graham Turner said.

“While the cost of living is generally increasing, very low unemployment globally and travel’s proven resilience are significant offsetting factors for our business, with customers having both the means and the desire to make the most of their limited vacation time after being denied that opportunity for some two years.

“Corporates also continue to re-engage face-to-face to re-establish old business relationships or to create new ones.”

Overall, Flight Centre reported that it doesn’t expect a full industry recovery in FY23, but does anticipate to be tracking close to its monthly pre-covid TTV levels by the end of the year — as long as conditions continue to normalise and given its market-share gains.

“We believe we are well placed to capture more than our share of a market that is recovering and likely to reach pre-COVID levels in 2024,” CFO Adam Campbell said.

Flight Centre shares ended the day 4.56 per cent in the red to close at $16.55 each.

The company will pay an initial consideration of $7 million at settlement, which will be funded from existing bank facilities. Final payment of $8.2 million is due by the end of July 2024 to be paid in cash or MOV shares.

MOV believes the acquisition complements its existing fuel and bulk liquids logistics business and supports its strategy for further growth.

New Zealand-based Fluidex has been in business for over 60 years and generates recurring revenue in excess of $11 million.

The news came as the company announced its full financial year statement, where normalised EBITDA landed within its guidance at $54.3 million.

However, the company flagged the continued global supply chain disruptions resulted in higher operating expenses of $340.37 million.

The company finished the financial year with $14.94 million in cash and cash equivalents.

Chair Lorraine Witten said she was confident in the future potential of MOVE.

“The last year has been one of re-shaping the business and defining a clearer more focused service,” she said.

“We are now positioned for the next phase with a stronger balance sheet, and a talented team to drive profitable growth.”

Shares ended the day trading flat at $1.20 each.

Subject to shareholder approval, PTB shareholders will receive $1.595 for each share in cash – a 40.5 per cent premium to the last closing price on August 17.

The scheme consideration represents a total transaction equity value for PTB Group of $202.9 million and preliminary unaudited EBITDAFX of $21.8 million.

An addition, PTB is expecting to pay a dividend of up to 0.03 cents for each share, fully franked, if it can keep cash balance over $2.75 million after payment of the dividend.

The aviation parts company said it chose to enter the SID with PAG after completing a strategic review this year, and the PTB board unanimously recommends shareholders vote in favour of the scheme – saying its in their best interest.

PTB’s Managing Director and CEO, Stephen Smith said “we are proud of what the PTBteam has created, and the proposed transaction is an endorsement of the quality of ourcompany and the exceptional people that built PTB over a number of years.

“It also reflects the recent strong trading performance and PTB’s growth prospects. We are pleased to be entering into a binding transaction with PAG today and believe it is in the best interests of our shareholders.”

President and CEO of PAG, David Mast said “We are excited about adding PTB to thePrecision Aviation Group of Companies.

“The addition of PTB increases PAG’s repair stations to 20 worldwide and expands our Engine Services Division with the addition of the PT6 and TPE331.”

PTB shares were up 36.5 per cent, trading at $1.57 at market close.