Australian interest rates

The AFR is whining like a baby today led by former Commonwealth Bank of Australia CFO David Craig: “No international investor has bought a share in an Australian bank for the last month or two as far as I understand,” he says.

Via the AFR: AMP, the nation’s largest financial services group, is banning property buyers using their mortgage as a “piggy bank” for personal spending, escalating lenders’ response to regulatory pressure to rein-in ballooning household debt.

By Leith van Onselen As banks increase their rates on interest-only and investor mortgage loans, data from Canstar shows that just 15 out of 75 Australian lenders have increased their term deposit interest rates since the last official interest rate cut in August 2016.

Via WSJ comes the RBA’s Ian Harper: We’re on target, but to be blunt there is also plenty of evidence that you wouldn’t want to rush this (raising rates).” “There is still plenty of underemployment” and “it is not clear that inflation is rising” “We are not calling the economy dead.

Via Domainfax: A single buyer snapped up all $800 million of Australian government bonds sold on Wednesday, the largest ever amount bought by one bidder in auctions that date back to 1982.

Via the AFR: A minority group of economists have dumped their forecasts that the Reserve Bank of Australia will cut official interest rates again as the global central banking tide begins to change direction.

From Matthew Hassan: As widely expected, the RBA left the official cash rate unchanged at 1.50% at its July meeting.

The RBA statement: At its meeting today, the Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 1.50 per cent.

From Bendigo: Managing director Mike Hirst said the changes reflect the requirement to meet the regulator’s expectations while responding to the ultra-competitive owner occupied mortgage pricing market for new lending.

Via UBS: Are the major banks setting RBA monetary policy?

Via Macquarie: We estimate that out-of-cycle interest rate hikes announced over the last 12 months reduced overall households’ incomes by ~$5bn.

From the RBA Shadow today: Australia’s economic outlook remains mixed.

From Australian Broker: ME today announced several changes across its home loan portfolio.

Mr Rainbow is on the run at the New Daily: A widely-misreported warning of eight rate hikes in two years would in fact be good news for the economy, according to the man who made the prediction.

What’s so cheered central bankers worldwide in recent days?

A speech from Wayne Byers yesterday certainly sets such up (cut to the end for the money quote): WAYNE BYRES Chairman The American Chamber of Commerce in Australia Business Briefing, Sydney 28 June 2017 Thank you for the invitation to speak this afternoon.

John Edwards AKA Mr Rainbow is back: Shrugging off slow first quarter growth in the US economy, the Federal Reserve increased its policy interest rate earlier this month, and intends to do more.

Via Banking Day: Westpac has swung the axe on a range of alternative mortgages marketed by its Bank of Melbourne and Bank SA subsidiaries.

The rarely useful Elizabeth Knight put her finger on something over the weekend: There is a hidden and worrying risk lurking for a particular set of mortgage borrowers, whose level of financial stress is about to get a whole lot worse.

From NAB: NAB has today announced changes to its variable home loan interest rates, effective Friday 30 June 2017.

A fading China, downgrades, levies, housing bubbles and no growth.

The conniption begins, from Chanticleer: Bad policy clearly breeds bad policy, as shown by South Australia’s $370 million tax on the big four banks and Macquarie Group.

From Bloxo yesterday: …reading the economy recently has also required an expert eye.