Tag Archives: Banks

A resurgence in property prices means LVR ‘speed limits’ are like to stay in place, Standard & Poor’s says in a report that predicts banks will continue to post strong earnings growth while trading in the shadow of a “heightened risk” of a future property crash.   “The relatively low level of credit losses over the next two-to-three years will continue, underpinning …

The major banks are breathing a sigh of relief that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand has dropped proposals that would have deemed anyone owning five or more residential properties as a commercial borrower, although the Property Institute is unhappy with the latest proposals, published yesterday for consultation. The central bank intends to require banks to set aside more capital against lending on …

ANZ Bank New Zealand has agreed to a $19 million settlement with the Commerce Commission after an investigation into the marketing and sale of interest rate swaps to rural customers between 2005 and 2009. Under the settlement the local unit of Australia & New Zealand Banking Group will establish an $18.5 million fund to pay affected rural customers and pay …

The switch from floating to fixed interest rates mortgages has impacted Westpac New Zealand’s net interest margin,which fell six basis points in the 2014 financial year. Net interest margin is the difference between what interest the bank charges for loans and what it has to pay for the money. It fell to 2.27 percent in the year ending Sept. 30, from …

Westpac Banking Corp and Kiwibank led earnings growth among New Zealand’s banks in the second quarter, as increased lending and wider margins propped up profits. Net profit across New Zealand’s banks edged down to $1.125 billion in the three months ended June 30 from $1.15 billion in the March quarter, though stripping out a one-off insurance settlement by Australia & New …

ASB Bank, the New Zealand unit of Commonwealth Bank of Australia, boosted full-year cash profit 12 percent as it grew its wealth and insurance business and kept a lid on costs. Cash profit, which excludes one-time items that don’t reflect the underlying business, rose to $699 million in the 12 months ended June 30, the company said in a statement. …

Westpac New Zealand has pulled back on its level of mortgage lending where it wears the bulk of the risk, amid increasingly volatile house prices. The lender has reduced its level of lending above an 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LVR) to about 21 percent from about 22 percent a year after house prices in Auckland and Christchurch rose at a …

ANZ Bank announced an assistance package to help drought-affected farmers get through the Big Dry.  Parts of Northland have had their driest February since records began. This week the Government declared a state of drought in Northland, and Federated Farmers expects other regions to follow soon. “As with any serious weather event that impacts on dairy and meat production, the …

ANZ Banking Group, New Zealand’s biggest bank, increased gross loans and advances by more than any of its main banking rivals in the three months to June 30, ahead of the announcement of the demise of its National Bank of New Zealand brand. The 1.26 percent growth in its gross loans and advances was bettered only by minnow The Cooperative …