BANKS AND BANKING

Mortgage rates hit record lows

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Original article by Jonathan Shapiro|Clancy Yeates|Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 24-Jul-14

Three of Australia’s four major banks reduced their fixed mortgage interest rates on 23 July 2014, after the five-year swap rate fell to just 3.11 per cent in the previous week. The Commonwealth Bank’s five-year fixed rate has fallen to a record low of just 4.99 per cent, with Westpac and National Australia Bank reducing their rates for new customers to the same level. Meanwhile, market watchers expect the Reserve Bank to leave the cash rate on hold after inflation rose to three per cent in the second quarter

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA|WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC|NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB|RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA|AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ|BELL POTTER SECURITIES LIMITED|BELL FINANCIAL GROUP LIMITED – ASX BFG|UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD|MALAYSIAN AIRLINE SYSTEMS|AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS|RATECITY PTY LTD|MOZO PTY LTD|MEMBERS EQUITY BANK PTY LTD|UBANK

Interest rates set to remain at record lows

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Original article by Bianca Hartge-Hazelman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 27 : 17-Jul-14

The general consensus of economists polled by Bloomberg is that Australia’s cash rate will rise in the first half of 2015, although the financial market has priced in a better-than-even chance of a rate cut by the end of 2014. Tim Toohey of Goldman Sachs is also bucking the trend, and believes that the Reserve Bank could potentially reduce the cash rate again by September. The central bank itself has retained a neutral bias on monetary policy

CORPORATES
GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, BLOOMBERG LP, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. INSTITUTE OF APPLIED ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH, AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP

RBA’s Stevens talks down dollar, again

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Original article by Jacob Greber, Vesna Poljak
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1-Dec : 4-Jul-14

Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens has signalled his willingness to use interest rates to reduce the value of the Australian dollar, which he believes is excessive. His concerns about the negative impact of the high foreign exchange rate on the economy may result in another cut to interest rates. Stevens’s remarks promptly pushed the Australian dollar down to $US0.9362 on 3 July 2014

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND, BANK FOR INTERNATIONAL SETTLEMENTS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

Australian rally on Fed statements could be short-lived

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Original article by Sally Rose
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 and 22 : 20-Jun-14

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose by 1.6 per cent on 19 June 2014, and the All Ordinaries Index was up 1.5 per cent. The bullish sentiment was prompted by indications that US interest rates are set to remain at a historic low in the near-term. Meanwhile, the Australian dollar rose to $US0.9423 and the yield on 10-year government bonds fell by two per cent. George Clapham of Arnhem Investment Management cautions that economic data in China will remain the key influence on the Australian sharemarket

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX ALL ORDINARIES INDEX, ARNHEM INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, BANK OF ENGLAND, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE, WILSON HTM LIMITED, MLC LIMITED, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK