CEO INSIGHTS – Week Ending 10 April 2026

Ocean Freight

“But all in all [over the next 5 years], the volatility will be higher. So, drastic ups and downs are what we expect regardless of the type of vessels.” Jotaro Tamura, CEO, Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd [one of the largest shipping companies in the world]

“The ceasefire may create transit opportunities, but it does not yet provide full maritime certainty, and we need to understand all potential conditions attached” Market Statement, A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S [world’s second-largest container liner]

Mining

“Capricorn is not currently impacted by any diesel fuel supply issues. However, this remains a key focus and a material risk for the Australian mining industry.” Market Statement, Capricorn Metals Ltd

“Our operations have not been impacted by fuel supply chain disruptions to date.” Market Statement, Ramelius Resources Ltd

Productivity

“We have this tool…[that] is the cornerstone to perhaps really driving a massive uplift in productivity across the country, which is AI. Instead of being concerned about its potential negative impact – and its potential impact on some roles – the fact that it will mean so many more roles can potentially be more efficient and more effective is the kind of thing that we should be going after.” Anthony Miller, CEO, Westpac Banking Corp Ltd.

Private Equity

“Private equity investments are now held for an average of seven years — this is virtually double what it used to be. We have generally had nothing but a bull market since the great financial crisis — it’s hard to imagine what will happen if and when we have an extended bear market.” Jamie Dimon, CEO, JP Morgan Chase & Co

Australia vs Global Retail

“It acts as an early warning for what our Chinese competitors will do, because Australia is a lot closer to China than Europe is…We see a lot of Chinese activity pop up first in Australia, so we can prepare in Europe and the US for that.” Nikolas Stihl, Chairman, STIHL Group

Residential Building

“Residential building is very different to many other sectors. Builders typically enter into fixed price contracts well before construction begins, often many months in advance. That gives consumers price certainty, which is a good thing, but it also means builders carry a level of risk that other industries are not exposed to in the same way…For most businesses, rising costs can be passed on relatively quickly. In residential construction, that’s simply not how it works.” Jocelyn Martin, CEO, Housing Institute Australia

“If there is significant disruption in the building industry, the acute undersupply of affordable housing will worsen.” Market Statement, Aspen Group Ltd

Cars vs. Bikes

"What we've seen is two specific sorts of increases: one is for the purchase of e-bikes and the second is for workshop, service, and repair of old non-e-bikes." Peter Bourke, General Manager, Bicycle Industry Australia

Consumers

“Wallets have been stretched. If they get stretched further, people are still going to look for value.” John Rainey, CFO, Walmart Inc.

Memory Shortages & Price Increases

“We also know that there are some customers who will say, oh, the price has gone up too fast, I think I'm going to wait for it to come down, right? And who knows? Maybe it will come down. It doesn't look like it's happening anytime soon….But there are about 1/3, about 500 million of the 1.5 billion PCs in the world, that are 4 years old or older. Okay? And so if you work at a company, let's say, with knowledge workers, and now you've got a 4-year-old PC, this is a bad situation, right? And so you're paying somebody $100,000 or whatever to do their job, and they've got this decrepit tool that doesn't work very well, and they know it.” Michael Dell, CEO, Dell Technologies Inc.

Alcohol & Packaging

“As flagged at the 1H26 results, the seasonal mix shift toward wine and champagne, consistent with the Northern Hemisphere vintage, is expected to occur in 2H26. Post the commencement of the Middle East conflict, we have also seen a combination of a slower offtake in spirits, and a mix shift toward lower price and margin spirits products.” Market Statement, Orora Ltd