Ampol CEO Matt Halliday: Interest rate cuts will require discipline

Matt Halliday calls for economic discipline, to enable the forecast interest rate cuts that will assist in stimulating the economy.

Ampol CEO Matt Halliday in Sydney. Picture: Ryan Osland

CEO SURVEY 2025: FULL COVERAGE

Economy

How would you rate the momentum of the Australian economy as we head into 2025? Official forecasts have Australia trimming interest rates from the first half of calendar 2025, is that consistent with your view? What are you seeing around inflation in your own business?

The Australian economy is softening as we head into 2025, with the headwinds of

inflation and a higher interest rate environment impacting confidence from Australian

households. GDP per capita is going backwards, and although inflation is coming down,

it remains too high. We need real focus and discipline on the demand and supply sides

of the economy to enable the forecasted interest rate cuts that will assist in stimulating

the economy.

Outlook

What excites you heading into 2025? Are you likely to increase, hold steady, or trim your investment spend?

We closely monitor rising capital costs and adjust our investment strategy accordingly.

The majority of our spend is driven by regulation and tends to crowd out more

productive expenditure. The nature, scale and significance of many of those projects

that are growth oriented requires us to take a view through the cycle.

Longer-term projects involving renewable fuels, leveraging our existing supply chain,

requires durable government policy in order to drive confidence to invest. There is

growing alignment between industry participants on the policy required in this space.

Reform

As we move into an election year, in your mind, what’s the single biggest lever that can/should be used to lift Australia’s competitiveness or productivity? This could be across any area from labour market, tax reform, training or other areas to encourage investment.

Competitive energy and labour are critical foundations that flow through almost every

part of the economy. To strengthen Australia’s global competitiveness, it is essential to

ensure we have a labour market that is flexible, innovative and can deliver the

necessary skills in areas where Australia has advantages. It is equally important that we

can deliver competitive energy across the economy, and both these elements will be

instrumental in driving sustainable productivity growth and ensuring Australia’s

success in global markets.

Geopolitics

Will a Donald Trump presidency have a potential impact on your business or sector (tariffs or streamlined regulation)? Does geopolitics drive a bigger part of your decision-making?

It is still too early to determine what the impact of Trump’s presidency may be, but

history tells us there is likely to be a level of disruption and volatility which brings with

it opportunities and challenges. Australia’s strong relationship with the US should help

mitigate the risks of any foreshadowed tariffs.

Geopolitics is always on our minds, especially given the ongoing conflicts in various

regions of the world. However, our role as a business is to manage these risks,

particularly around ensuring a competitive and secure fuel supply.

People

Has your organisation’s approach to flexible working – including working from home – evolved during the year. Is this likely to change further into 2025?

It’s important to recognise that the majority of our staff work in frontline roles and have

to be onsite to carry out their duties. Where flexible work is possible, we have and will

continue to opt for a balanced approach where staff are asked to spend more time in the

office than working from home. We think this approach strikes the right balance

between flexibility, fostering collaboration and maintaining company culture.

Technology

Where is your organisation along the AI journey – is it in the developmental stage, or are you now using the technology at scale across your business? If so, are benefits matching the promise?

Currently, Ampol’s use of AI is relatively limited. We are pleased, however, with the

incremental improvements AI has brought to our supply chain optimisation and we will

continue exploring its potential to enhance productivity across our wider operations.