Andrew Pegler – 26 November 2010 Are the banks just gouging scoundrels or is there something to this “funding costs” malarkey? As we all know the big four banks shared a $22 billion dollars profit this year, which is pretty good work if you can get it. The Super funds were happy and shareholders were…
With so much talk about interest rates I thought it apt to take a look at some of the basics of the whole shebang. What’s a central bank? This is a country’s primary monetary authority. Ours is called the Reserve Bank of Australia, known as the RBA. Other examples include the European Central Bank, the…
Andrew Pegler – 26 March 2010 THE GFC has changed how banks raise money. While this isn’t great for borrowers it’s boon time for savers. Ever wondered how banks get their money? It’s a mix of your deposits with what they can borrow from other financial institutions on the capital markets. (Capital markets are where…
Posted by Andrew Pegler on February 26, 2010 Hello UBankers (don’t read that aloud too fast as it may sound like an insult). This week I will continue this blog’s firm political stance on not having a firm political stance and take a gander at the ads and disads of the political football that is…
Posted August 2009 To fix or not to fix? That is the question. Do you punt on interest rates going up and fix in your rate now or bet the house on rates staying low and stick with a variable loan? While I am not in the position to give advice, I have put together…
Well quite a lot actually but more on that later. As some of you may already have read, Australia just recorded its lowest annual inflation rate since the end of 1999 and it’s the first time it’s gone below 2% annually since 2007. By way of background, inflation is measured by the Consumer Price Index,…
Recession? Moi? You wouldn’t usually think of Poland and South Korea when you think of classic Aussie bed fellow but think again. The recent release of the national figures that measure these sorts of thing has our economy growing by a faster-than-expected 0.4 per cent in the first three months of this year. This pulls…
