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The Esports Mogul Ltd (ASX: ESH) share price is down 5% in early afternoon trading. The fall comes after the company reported that its esports platform is going mobile.

Despite today’s fall, shareholders of the thinly traded stock who have held on through this bumpy year, with sharp downswings followed by even sharper rebounds, are currently sitting on a gain of 80% in 2020.

That compares to a gain of just over 2% for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

What does Esports Mogul do?

Esports Mogul owns and operates an esports (online sports games) media and software business. Mogul brings together players, game developers and tournament organisers with an initial focus in Australia and Southeast Asia.

The company’s esports tournament and matchmaking platform offer automation for major esports titles with streaming functionality and in platform chat capabilities. Mogul’s revenue is derived from sponsors for its esports events and partnerships with brands.

What’s driving the Esports Mogul share price?

In an ASX announcement this morning, Mogul revealed it has begun its move into mobile with in-market beta testing of its Mogul App.

Currently, gamers wanting to play in mobile esport title tournaments do so online, via web platforms that includes the company’s mogul.gg. Mogul says its online move will give players and publishers “a world-first experience on one device”.

Esports Mogul said the global mobile games market is forecast to generate US$86.3 billion (AU$116.7 billion) in 2020. That already represents 49% of the total games market. And mobile is growing twice as fast as PC and console gaming.

The beta testing of the Mogul App is part of the company’s plans for a broader global release of its esports tournament experience for the largest gaming segment.

Commenting on the mobile rollout, Mogul CEO Michael Rubinelli said:

This is an exciting step on our progression towards becoming the definitive global esports destination for branded sponsors and player of all abilities, gaming interest, and location, independent of their platform of choice…. Players will be able to effortlessly create, host, and compete in all of the best branded mobile esports tournaments available anywhere.

With Esports Mogul’s share price sliding today, could today’s news have already been largely priced into the stock?

More reading

• ASX 200 up 0.7%: CBA update, IGO enters lithium market, Healius jumps
• Morgans picks the best ASX stocks to buy for 2021
• S&P Global set to launch world’s first cryptocurrency index
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• ASX 200 up on Tuesday

Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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At lunch on Wednesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to continue its positive run. The benchmark index is currently up 0.7% to 6,732.9 points.

Here’s what is happening on the market today:

UK COVID-19 vaccine gives ASX 200 a boost.

The rollout of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in the United Kingdom has begun and appears to have given investor sentiment a boost today. According to the BBC, a 90-year-old grandmother became the first person in the world to be given the vaccine. That was the first of 800,000 doses of the vaccine that will be distributed in the coming weeks.

CBA divestment update.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price is pushing higher today after providing an update on its divestments. According to the release, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission has granted approval for the divestment of the bank’s 37.5% equity interest in BoCommLife to MS&AD Insurance Group. The final sale proceeds are expected to be $886 million, which, combined with a revision to other non-cash gains on previous divestments, is expected to boost its CET1 ratio by 29 basis points.

IGO enters lithium market.

The IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) share price is in a trading halt today after announcing a binding agreement with Chinese company Tianqi Lithium Corporation to acquire a 49% stake in its Australian lithium mining business for $1.9 billion. The nickel producer intends to fund the deal through a combination of $1.1 billion of new debt facilities, an equity raising of up to $766 million, and existing cash reserves of between $85 million and $149 million.

Best and worst ASX 200 performers.

The best performer on the ASX 200 on Wednesday has been the Healius Ltd (ASX: HLS) share price with a 5% gain. This follows the release of a trading update and the announcement of a $200 million share buyback. The worst performer has been the Abacus Property Group (ASX: ABP) share price with a 5% decline following the completion of its equity raising.

More reading

• Morgans picks the best ASX stocks to buy for 2021
• Why Afterpay, Creso Pharma, Healius, & Resonance Health shares are storming higher
• S&P Global set to launch world’s first cryptocurrency index
• IGO (ASX:IGO) enters lithium market, shares on trading halt
• Healius (ASX:HLS) share price jumps 6% on update and $200m share buyback plan

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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ASX stocks are likely to finish 2020 with a bang but this isn’t the time to get complacent as ASX outperformers in 2021 may not be the ones you’re expecting.

The broker’s analysts have done a sector “reset” as they try to pick the best ASX stocks and strategies for the new year.

The supercharged November market rally has positioned the S&P/ASX 200 Index (Index:^AXJO) to finish the year at breakeven.

That’s a good outcome given the nail-biting COVID‐19 market crash.

Bumpy road to recovery

While we have good reason to feel optimistic about 2021, just remember that economists, including the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), aren’t expecting the economy to return to pre-COVID levels till some time in 2022.

For this reason, Morgans is warning investors to expect a bumpy ride ahead, which makes indiscriminate buying a dangerous proposition.

Some of the sectors that the broker believes have the best upside in 2021 and its reasons are listed below.

ASX telco stocks

Sentiment has turned the corner now that the NBN is practically complete, helping to settle down customer migration. Telcos also see an improving outlook in mobile as competitive activity becomes more rational.

Stocks the broker favours are the TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX: TPG) share price and Nextdc Ltd (ASX: NXT) share price.

ASX banks

The banks recent financial performance has largely vindicated our view that the bad debt damage being factored into share prices was generally overdone.

Strong capital positions and generally improving asset quality outlook is now supportive of the dividend outlook, helping to fuel the strong rotation back into the segment now underway.

The key pick in this space is the Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price.

ASX Agriculture stocks

Following years of drought, improved seasonal conditions have provided much needed tailwinds for the sector and presented the opportunity for positive earnings operating leverage to return.

Some stocks that Morgans likes include the Graincorp Ltd (ASX: GNC) share price, Bega Cheese Ltd (ASX: BGA) share price and Nufarm Ltd (ASX: NUF) share price.

ASX Energy stocks

Our conviction in a sustainable oil market recovery is growing helped by vaccine progress (global growth, demand recovery), declining inventories, US shale issues and a weakening US dollar. This paints a bullish 1-2 year outlook.

Examples of key picks in this space are the Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price and Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) share price.

ASX mining stocks

Strong iron ore prices support compelling yields in BHP and RIO. Gold stocks now look more interesting on weakness given our view that risk appetite is likely to be highly variable through a bumpier than expected COVID recovery.

Besides the BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) share price, Morgan’s also likes the Ramelius Resources Limited (ASX: RMS) share price, the Coronado Global Resources Inc (ASX: CRN) share price and Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) share price.

More reading

• ASX 200 up 0.7%: CBA update, IGO enters lithium market, Healius jumps
• S&P Global set to launch world’s first cryptocurrency index
• Which ASX shares will China ‘punish’ next?
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• ASX 200 up on Tuesday

Motley Fool contributor Brendon Lau owns shares of Beach Energy Limited, Nufarm Limited, and Westpac Banking. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The 4DS Memory Ltd (ASX: 4DS) share price shot up in early trade today, reaching 13.5 cents a share before retreating slightly to its current price of $12.75, up 5.8%.

Today’s gains mean that the 4DS share price is up more than 166% year to date, and up 150% since the start of September.

4DS Memory is a company that works in the provision of computer memory devices, namely RAM (random access memory) and similar products. Based in Silicon Valley (in California, USA), it describes itself as a “semiconductor development company of non-volatile memory technology… for next generation gigabyte storage in mobile and cloud”. 

It holds a number of patents in the United States for RAM technology, with additional patents in the pipeline (more on that later). As such, 4DS reckons that it “is well-positioned to address the massive memory demands of tomorrow”.

So what’s behind this sudden rush for 4DS shares?

4DS share price benefits from US patent approval

The 4DS Memory share price appears to be benefitting today from an announcement the company made to the markets this morning just after open. In this announcement, 4DS advised that it has been granted approval by the United States for yet another patent. That brings the company’s total to 29.

This particular patent (Patent No. 10,862,028) is titled Resistive Memory Device Having A Template Layer. The company notes this patent “broadens the claims of previous patent grants”.

4DS CEO and managing director, Dr Guido Arnout, had this to say on the development:

4DS is extremely pleased to receive another USA patent grant which broadens its claims in Interface Switching ReRAM.

The company is working with patent attorneys and the US Patent and Trademark Office to have three more strategically important patents granted as soon as possible and will continue to file additional patents around new internal innovations.

4DS also noted in this release that, “the company has filed an additional three USA patent applications to protect its stream of internal innovations and to strengthen its intellectual property portfolio in the area of Interface Switching ReRAM for Storage Class Memory near to DRAM”.

More reading

• ASX 200 up 0.7%: CBA update, IGO enters lithium market, Healius jumps
• Morgans picks the best ASX stocks to buy for 2021
• Why Afterpay, Creso Pharma, Healius, & Resonance Health shares are storming higher
• S&P Global set to launch world’s first cryptocurrency index
• IGO (ASX:IGO) enters lithium market, shares on trading halt

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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In late morning trade the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to record a solid gain. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 0.65% to 6,731.2 points.

Four shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here’s why they are storming higher:

Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT)

The Afterpay share price is up 2% to $97.59. Investors have been buying Afterpay and other tech shares after a positive night of trade on the Nasdaq index. The tech-focused index outperformed the Dow Jones and S&P 500 with a 0.5% gain. This has led to the S&P/ASX All Technology Index (ASX: XTX) climbing 1.1% higher this morning.

Creso Pharma Ltd (ASX: CPH)

The Creso Pharma share price has continued its meteoric rise and is up 53% to 36 cents. Investors have been buying Creso Pharma’s shares since the UN announced a landmark decision to reclassify cannabis as a less dangerous drug and the US House of Representatives voted to decriminalise cannabis. This morning it announced plans to expand into Canada’s largest recreational market.

Healius Ltd (ASX: HLS)

The Healius share price is up 5% to $3.81. The catalyst for this has been the release of a strong trading update and the announcement of a $200 million on-market share buyback. The healthcare company also revealed that it has revised its dividend payout ratio to a target of 50% to 70% of reported net profit after tax.

Resonance Health Limited (ASX: RHT)

The Resonance Health share price has rocketed 51.5% higher to 23.5 cents. Investors have been fighting to get hold of the medical imaging company’s shares after the US FDA approved its HepaFat-AI product. HepaFat-AI is a medical software that is fully automated and uses artificial intelligence to assess liver fat through the analysis of MRI datasets. This provides doctors with a comprehensive, multi-metric tool for use in the assessment of fatty liver.

More reading

• Healius (ASX:HLS) share price jumps 6% on update and $200m share buyback plan
• What’s wrong with the Zip (ASX:Z1P) share price?
• Why Creso Pharma and these ASX shares just hit 52-week highs or better
• Which shares will benefit from trillions of dollars in new global stimulus?
• Zip and Creso Pharma were among the most traded shares on the ASX last week

James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of Resonance Health Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of AFTERPAY T FPO. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Most investors are probably familiar with the concept of an index. It’s what we use to measure the overall performance of the share market at any given time or day (or year for that matter). An index serves as a very useful barometer on how the broader market is performing and moving.

That’s why the first financial statistics you’re likely to see on an Aussie news bulletin’s business report each night usually relate to the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) or the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO). In the case of the ASX 200, this index measures the performance of the largest 200 companies on the ASX, weighted to market capitalisation. With the All Ords, it’s the largest 500 companies.

Over in the United States, it’s a similar story with the Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI), S&P 500 Index (SP: .INX) and Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQ: .IXIC). The Dow measures the performance of 30 individually selected shares on the US markets. The S&P 500 is more similar to our All Ords in that it measures the performance of most of the 500 largest companies listed on US markets. The Nasdaq is a little different in that it only includes companies that list on a certain exchange (the Nasdaq), but works in a similar manner to the S&P 500 in terms of weightings and so on.

But indexes don’t just measure shares (albeit stock indexes remain the most popular indexes to track). There are indexes for almost anything you can think of. For example, the Bloomberg AusBond Composite Index tracks a basket of bonds issued by the Australian Government. The S&P GSCI Crude Oil Index tracks the price of crude oil. You get the idea.

But a new type of index is set to be joining this throng, if reporting from Reuters is to be believed.

Bitcoin set to be indexed

Reuters reports that S&P Global Inc (NYSE: SPGI), the company behind the ‘S&P Indexes’, is set to launch a cryptocurrency index for the first time ever. 2021 will reportedly see the launch of this new index, which looks set to track “more than 550 of the top traded coins”. This will likely include the cryptocurrency posterchild Bitcoin. But it will also probably include popular ‘altcoins’ like Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash.

S&P Global is apparently working with a New York-based virtual currency company – Lukka – in this endeavour. The two companies issued a joint statement on the matter, which stated the following:

S&P’s clients will be able to work with the index provider to create customized indices and other benchmarking tools on cryptocurrencies… S&P and Lukka hope more reliable pricing data will make it easier for investors to access the new asset class, and reduce some of the risks of the very volatile and speculative market.

Reuters also quotes Peter Roffman, the global head of innovation and strategy at S&P Dow Jones Indices as saying:

With digital assets such as cryptocurrencies becoming a rapidly emerging asset class, the time is right for independent, reliable and user-friendly benchmarks.

Bitcoin has been generating headlines again this year due to massive price appreciation. Over the past year, bitcoin has increased by more than 150% in US dollar terms.

More reading

• Why the MSM (ASX:MSM) share price has gone gangbusters again
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Wednesday
• ASX 200 up on Tuesday
• Vocus (ASX:VOC) founder: ASX is in ‘bubble territory’
• Woodside (ASX:WPL) share price flat on CEO retirement

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Mining company IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) announced this morning that it has entered into a binding agreement with Chinese company Tianqi Lithium Corporation, to acquire a 49% stake in Tianqi’s Australian lithium mining business for $1.9 billion.

Before market open this morning, IGO asked the ASX to temporarily halt trading of its shares, pending the release of an announcement about the accelerated entitlement offer related to the acquisition today.

The trading halt will last until Friday 11 November 2020, unless revised otherwise.

The IGO share price closed yesterday at $5.095.

First foray into the lithium market for IGO

Today’s acquisition will effectively provide IGO with a 24.99% indirect interest in Greenbushes Lithium Mining and Processing Operation, and a 49% indirect interest in the Kwinana Lithium Hydroxide Plant – both located in Western Australia.

This marks IGO’s first first foray into the lithium market, which analysts believe will boom in the coming years along with the popularity of electric vehicles.

IGO intends to fund the deal through a combination of $1.1 billion of new debt facilities, an equity raising of up to $766 million, and existing cash reserves of between $85 million and $149 million.

The company said that both Greenbushes and Kwinana were world-class assets with attractive growth profiles that together provided the platform for building a global lithium business. 

IGO managing director and chief executive, Peter Bradford, said the deal was consistent with IGO’s strategy to become a global leader in clean energy:

This is a genuinely transformational transaction for IGO, and one that delivers on our strategy to become a global leader in the supply of metals critical for enabling a clean energy future.

We see Tianqi, a leader in the global lithium industry and with strong alignment to our strategy, as the ideal partner for IGO.

How has IGO performed recently

The mining company has delivered record profits for the last two consecutive years.

In FY19, the company delivered a net profit after tax (NPAT) of $76 million, a record profit for the company at the time. That was followed by another record NPAT of $155 million in FY20.

In September, investors were excited with news that IGO was considering to offload its $1 billion stake in the AngloGold Ashanti’s Tropicana gold mine. That plan is still on the table, as the company pivots its focus to the clean energy business.

About the IGO share price

The IGO share price has lost 15% of its value in 2020. The current share price is still a long way from its 52-week high of $7.11. The company commands a market cap of $3 billion.

More reading

• What do big brokers think about soaring commodity prices and ASX mining shares?

Motley Fool contributor Eddy Sunarto has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The MSM Corporation International Ltd (ASX: MSM) share price is rocketing higher today. This comes after the company announced strong customer uptake to the launch of the newly released Zombie Rollerz: Pinball Heroes on Apple Arcade.

At the time of writing, the MSM share price is up by 8.6% to 5 cents per share. In comparison, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is up 0.6% to 6,962 points.

Stardom launch

The company has been in the spotlight with investors, with the MSM share price soaring 20% in the last 2 days alone.

According to the release, MSM advised that Zombie Rollerz: Pinball Heroes has generated a lot of interest. The game, co-developed by Zing Games and MSM’s strategic partner, Firefly Games Inc. was launched globally 3 days ago.

Since then, statistics gathered from Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) have recorded 30 million impressions, over 325,000 page views, and first day retention at 45%. Management stated that the result has far exceeded its expectations.

Last month, MSM acquired a 10% stake in Riva Technology and Entertainment Limited (RTE) group. RTE is the majority shareholder in another company that is the sole owner of Firefly Games. Through this investment, MSM has a priority right to be paid in profits or distributions received by RTE, including gaming revenues.

Management commentary

MSM chair Mr Antoine Massad commented on the strong rollout of Zombie Rollerz:

For Zombie Rollerz to be featured as Game of the Day on the Apple Arcade App Store is a fantastic achievement given that it is a game developed entirely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is a credit to all involved and reiterates the benefit of our strategic relationship with RTE as they seek to maximise user engagement and monetisation opportunities in the rapidly evolving gaming industry.

MSM share price summary

The MSM share price has been on fire lately, with shareholders seeing gains of more than 20% during the week. While its shares were most stagnant from July, recent tailwinds have created investor hype.

Today’s share price increase represents a 1000% return for patient shareholders who kept their holdings since March.

More reading

• Why the MSM (ASX:MSM) share price is soaring 12% today
• Real-time ASX price data becoming FREE for regular punters
• ASX shares looking awesome for next year: economist
• Why the Xtek (ASX:XTE) share price is edging higher today
• ASX 200 Weekly Wrap: ASX 200 on track for a top month

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Etherstack PLC (ASX: ESK) share price is down nearly 3% in early morning trading, despite the company releasing a business update advising it expects FY21 results to significantly outperform FY2020. 

At the time of writing, the Etherstack share price is trading at 68 cents, down 2 cents from yesterday’s closing price.

Major contract wins in 2020

The wireless communications provider says it has had significant success winning major client contracts in 2020.

Three major contracts were won this year, including the delivery of its first major digital radio network to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The company also entered into a Global Teaming Agreement with Samsung Electronics, and signed a $4.1 million deal with the Australian Department of Defence. 

Furthermore, Etherstack reported that its recurring revenue will continue to grow, driven by both long-term support contracts and royalty payments derived from technology licensing. 

The company also advised that, due to continued reduction in long-term debt through repayments and convertible note conversions, it has significantly reduced interest costs this year.  

Quick take on Etherstack

Etherstack develops and licenses wireless technologies to other equipment vendors, as well as designs, manufactures and delivers its own innovative digital radio products.

The company was founded and is based in Sydney, but is twice as large offshore than onshore. It first listed on the ASX in 2012.

Etherstack has a global footprint, having won major contracts overseas including direct engagements with multiple NATO member governments. 

The company’s business is highly leveraged to government and infrastructure spend, which flows to areas such as public safety, utilities, defence and resource projects.

About the Etherstack share price

The Etherstack share price has been volatile over the past year. It reached an all-time high of $3.70 in July 2020, while its 52-week low of 12 cents occurred only around six weeks earlier.

The $3.70 price level was achieved after the company announced the contract with Samsung.

The Etherstack share price has gained 240% in 2020 and, at its current levels, the company’s market capitalisation stands around $84 million.

More reading

• The Etherstack (ASX:ESK) share price is soaring 10% higher today. Here’s why.

Motley Fool contributor Eddy Sunarto has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) will take Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) to court over its decision to sack 2,000 workers.

The airline told the ground-handling staff at the end of last month that their jobs would be terminated to be replaced by outsourced services.

While the union had a chance to put in a bid to compete against the outsourcers, Qantas went with the latter to save $100 million a year.

Principal for law firm Maurice Blackburn, Josh Bornstein, said the legal challenge would “put outsourcing on trial” and could have far-reaching consequences.

“If Qantas can replace thousands of its employees with cheaper, insecure labour hire employees then this can happen to any other employee in any Australian workplace.”

The Motley Fool understands the airline will be using specialist ground services providers rather than generic “labour hire”.

“We recognise that this is a difficult decision which impacts a lot of our people but outsourcing this work to specialist ground handlers who already do this work for us in other cities across the country is not unlawful,” a Qantas spokesperson told The Motley Fool. 

According to Bornstein, who is acting for the union in the case, Fair Work Act dictates a company can’t fire employees because they’re entitled to collectively bargained conditions.

“By outsourcing this work, Qantas is seeking to avoid collective bargaining under the Fair Work Act,” he said.

“If the outsourcing proceeds, Qantas will no longer have to negotiate with the workers who perform the work. Instead Qantas will be able to unilaterally impose a price for the services of outsourced workers, and those outsourced workers will not be allowed to bargain with Qantas under current [industrial relations] laws.”

The company is already using outsourced ground-handling services in 55 smaller airports across the country. The economics works out better when the cost for such staff are shared across several airlines. 

COVID-19 forced job cuts, says Qantas

Qantas has so far cut 8,500 employees out of what was formerly a 29,000-strong workforce prior the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Unfortunately, COVID has turned aviation upside down. Airlines around the world are having to make dramatic decisions in order to survive and the damage will take years to repair,” said Qantas domestic and international chief Andrew David last month.

He had also publicly criticised TWU’s bid submitted to the outsourcing review.

“The TWU’s in-house bid claimed that significant savings could be made but it failed to outline sufficient practical detail on how this might be achieved, despite us requesting this information multiple times throughout the process,” David said. 

“Even with the involvement of a large accounting firm, the bid falls well short of what the specialist external providers were able to come up with.”

Bornstein said the pandemic had especially accentuated the vulnerability of insecure staffing on casual or outsourced contracts.

“They aren’t paid properly, they work in unsafe conditions and they are forced to scrounge a living working at multiple jobs. Qantas has decided to pour petrol onto that fire.”

He added the only stakeholders to benefit from the sackings are “big shareholders and Qantas executives”.

“This decision is bad for workers, customers and the Australian economy. More low wage, insecure jobs means less spending and more damage to a fragile economy.”

More reading

• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today
• Will the Qantas (ASX:QAN) share price go higher with reopened borders?
• This ASX travel share is already too expensive: fundies
• Regional Express (ASX:REX) share price soars to 13-year high
• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today

Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo owns shares of Qantas Airways Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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