GOOD NEWS ABOUNDS

GENERALLY the sharemarket has had a pretty good 12 months but many analysts were nervous ahead of this latest earnings season on whether corporate profits would justify these higher share prices.

Well, the verdict is in and the fact is that corporate Australia is in pretty good shape. Profits and dividends are solid and certainly underpinning the current 17 times price to earnings ratio of the market.

Financial research group, Commsec, has crunched the numbers of the top 200 companies and found;

■ Revenues up 6.4 per cent, profits up 66 per cent and dividends up 10.6 per cent.

■ Cash reserves of these companies up 27 per cent.

■ Best profit performers have been mining and energy, packaged foods and meat, housing associated companies, real estate investment trusts.