iSelect chief executive resigns; Housing finance commitments fall in August: Midday Roundup

iSelect chief executive Matt McCann has resigned, with David Chalmers to take on the top job on a temporary basis.

The resignation comes just a couple of months after the insurance company listed on the ASX and is in the midst of an Australian Securities and Investments Commission investigation into iSelect’s calendar year 2013 outlook.

iSelect have since confirmed the inquest from ASIC but said it had no reason to believe it would not achieve its CY13 forecast of $30 million.

McCann has been with iSelect since 2008 when he joined as the head of corporate development and was appointed as chief executive in 2012.

The reasons behind his departure remain unclear.

Housing finance commitments fall in August

Total dwelling finance commitments, excluding alterations and additions fell by 1.2% in August.

Owner-occupied housing commitments also fell 1.9%, seasonally adjusted. In original terms the number of first home buyer commitments compared to total owner-occupied finance commitments fell 13.7% in August 2013 from 14.7% in July.

The number of home loans slipped 3.9% for the month, seasonally adjusted, with 49,912 granted.

The average loan size for all owner occupier housing commitments rose by $100 to $299,800.

Retail Zoo considering sale of Boost Juice

The United States company which owns Boost Juice is considering selling the franchise or an IPO early next year.

Retail Zoo, which is 70% owned by private equity firm Riverside Company, is considering its options, as the founders look to cash in, according to The Australian.

There are almost 200 Boost Juice stores in Australia and it was founded by Australian Janine Allis in 1998.

Retail Zoo is also the parent company of Salsa’s, Fresh Mex Grill and Cibo Espresso chains.

Shares fall on open

Aussie shares have opened lower this morning, defying analyst expectations that the market would follow Wall St higher.

The S&P/ASX200 benchmark was down 36.7 points to 5194.2 at 12:06 AEDT.

All major industries suffered losses, with the energy sector slipping 148.4 points to 13,684.9, while healthcare fell 136 points to 13,707.6.

Ending last week the Dow Jones closed 0.73% higher on Friday, up 111.04 points to 15,237.11.