Dispatches: RBA says bad debts at Big Four have peaked
Bad debt charges at Australian banks have peaked, the RBA said today, and profits are higher despite global financial uncertainty. In its latest six-month review of the financial system, the Reserve Bank of Australia today said the stock of non-performing assets on bank balance sheets was stabilising at a lower level than in previous cycles, while access to funding markets had improved. (The Australian)
Just weeks after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's final veto of National Australia Bank's acquisition of AXA Asia Pacific, its chairman, Graeme Samuel has used a speech to deny the regulator is adopting a tougher line by blocking more mergers. (Money Management)
Australia's largest private health insurer Medibank Private says it expects its premium increases to remain below the industry average. Delivering Medibank Private's annual results on Thursday, Managing director George Savvides said the company had delivered premium rises below industry average for three consecutive years at around five to six per cent. (Sky News)
