Distortion Guaranteed?

While the Rudd government may have moved quickly to provide guarantees for the major Banks during a financial turmoil … the impact of doing so has been disastrous for borrowers.

Right now, these major Banks seem to account for virtually 80% of all owner-occupier loans for property.

As such, the margins they are charging have never been higher — despite the Banks’ protestations of being “squeezed”.

RBA's Dilemma

RBA's Dilemma


Therefore, overall borrowings borrowings have been slowly trending downward over the past six months — because the major Banks have effectively amplified the rate increases handed down by the RBA.
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Biggest Economic Threat For Australia

It might surprise you to hear this, however …

h3. A Strong US Recovery

… would probably be the worst thing to happen for Australia in 2010.

If that occurs, the US Federal Reserve would be forced to quickly raise interest rates, from zero to around 3%. And that would cause the collapse in the Australian dollar from its current level of around US90c.

Up until now, Australia has been shielded from inflationary pressures, with a high dollar holding down the cost of imports.
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