Kresta shareholders urged to accept Chinese takeover bid; CBA cuts its five-year fixed mortgage rate: Midday Roundup

The directors of curtains and blinds retailer Kresta are urging its shareholders to accept a $27.7 million takeover bid launched by Hong Kong-based trading company Suntarget Trading in a statement to the ASX.

The directors said there are currently no other takeover offers on the table and Kresta needs to raise additional equity capital to complete an ongoing restructuring program.

“There remains significant work to be done to restructure Kresta’s business to improve its profitability and as such there is risk that this may not be done effectively and in a timely manner,” said the directors.

Meanwhile, in an independent report prepared by KPMG, investors were told Suntarget Trading’s 23 cents per share is “fair and reasonable”.

Suntarget Trading is a subsidiary of APlus, a major textiles company based in mainland China, which was launched by entrepreneur Xianfeng Lu in 2003.

CBA cuts its five-year fixed mortgage rate

The Commonwealth Bank has announced it is cutting its five-year fixed mortgage rate to just 4.99% per annum, 0.7% lower than its previous rate.

The bank said in a statement this is the first time it has offered a five-year fixed-rate below 5%.

The new rate is effective as of today, and applies to the bank’s Wealth Package and Mortgage Advantage Package products.

“This is a great opportunity for customers to lock in an extremely competitive rate for five years,” said Commonwealth Bank executive general manager retail products and third party, Lyn Cobley.

Shares up on open

Aussie shares have opened higher this morning, following Wall Street’s strong lead overnight.

The S&P/ASX200 benchmark was up 51 points, or 0.9%, to 5594.3 points at 12.14pm AEST. On Tuesday, the Dow Jones closed 61.81 points higher, up 0.36% to 17113.5 points.