Personal Loans Australia News

Financial crisis 'a bonanza' for big banks - Mar 08, 2010
The Australia Institute has picked the week of another increase in mortgage rates to launch what it claims to be a comprehensive history of the price gouging habits of the big four banks...

Rates hike: it's all uphill from here - Mar 03, 2010
The Reserve Bank has signalled more interest rate rises are on the way after it yesterday lifted the cash rate to 4 per cent...

Financial reforms off target - Feb 26, 2010
Several industry commentators have expressed concerns in recent days that the financial reforms around the world will fail to deal with the real problems that led to the financial crisis and consequent corporate collapses...

Rate rise clues awaited in business investment data - Feb 22, 2010
Key data on business investment due this week will give home owners more clues about the prospect of another interest rate rise in March...

Many Aussies 'financially unfit': survey - Feb 16, 2010
Almost a third of Australian women and a quarter of men are classed as financially unfit, despite improvements in the economy, a survey shows...

Banks in for one last slice of guarantee - Feb 15, 2010
LAST week's decision by the federal government to put a deadline on the removal of the wholesale funding guarantee as expected sparked a rush of issues by smaller lenders...

ACCC concerned about NAB bid for AXA - Feb 15, 2010
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has indicated it has greater concerns about the National Australia Bank’s (NAB’s) acquisition of AXA Asia Pacific than it did about the bid by AMP Limited...

Separation anxiety - Feb 10, 2010
The GFC has made a big impact on couples thinking about divorce

The global financial crisis may be responsible for saving a few marriages - for the time being...

Fee gouging by big banks - Feb 09, 2010
Banking with Australia’s big four banks is not a cost-effective exercise for many Australians and they could save themselves a significant amount by going elsewhere, according to new research released by InfoChoice...

Banks warned of rate 'wrath' - Feb 08, 2010
THE nation's banks have been warned they will face the ''wrath of the Australian government'' if they push up mortgage rates in the face of a decision announced yesterday to stop guaranteeing their overseas borrowings...

Rates hold-up robs banks of best-laid plans - Feb 03, 2010
THE Reserve Bank's decision to hold the official cash rate has placed the big banks in something of a dilemma...

Mortgage brokers face own industry evolution - Feb 02, 2010
Mortgage brokers have been going through an evolutionary period since the new National Credit Protection Legislation came into effect on January 1, and the challenges they face resonate with the financial planning sector...

Banks set out stalls to woo small business - Feb 01, 2010
A new battlefront has broken out between Australia's major banks to attract and hold small to medium businesses which continue to reel from the global financial crisis...

Home loans keep driving credit rise - Feb 01, 2010
Loans to the private sector grew by 0.3 per cent in December, but business borrowing continued to fall...

Choice study names unfair credit card companies - Jan 25, 2010
Hidden details about the interest charged on partly-paid or overdue credit card balances is unfairly costing customers, consumer advocate group Choice says...

The dark side of credit - Jan 21, 2010
In this post-Christmas period, many people will be worried about their debts and some - including businesses - may already be under pressure from debt collectors...

Shareholders lose, banks win in new law - Jan 20, 2010
In a big win for the banks, the Federal Government will draft laws to reverse the effect of a High Court decision that protected the rights of shareholders in the event of a corporate collapse...

Business lending bounce an 'encouraging sign' - Jan 19, 2010
Economists say there are good grounds for anticipating a sustainable economic recovery, after a jump in business borrowing...

Over-regulation could 'kill banking' - Dec 21, 2009
A respected economic scholar is warning that some plans to regulate banks in the wake of the credit crash would kill lending and be disastrous...

Small businesses want action on finance woes - Dec 21, 2009
While Treasurer Wayne Swan has been critical of Westpac for gouging mortgage customers, small businesses say the Government has been silent on their treatment...

AMP and NAB go head-to-head - Dec 21, 2009
AMP will seek talks with France's AXA SA to gauge its commitment to an agreement that locks the two in as partners for an attempted move on AXA Asia Pacific, even after the pair were trumped last week by National Australia Bank...

RAMS group butts heads with bankers in court - Dec 16, 2009
THE listed vehicle holding old RAMS home loans, RHG, is fighting a court ruling to pay a German lender $10 million, while facing a separate court action from the same lender alleging a default on $300 million in notes...

RBA board buys room to move - Dec 16, 2009
It was a close call. In central bank-speak, a "finely balanced" decision. The minutes of the Reserve Bank's December board meeting suggest there was a serious debate about whether to increase the cash rate - for a record third consecutive month - or to hold off to February...

Liquidity rule will force rate hike: CBA - Dec 16, 2009
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has warned that it may increase interest rates because of additional costs associated with proposed rules that require a greater proportion of liquid assets to be held on bank balance sheets...

Lessons from the GFC - Dec 15, 2009
The public's trust in the financial service industry has been severely dented as a result of the ravages of the global financial crisis and the greed of sections of the financial services industry...


Wed, 28 January 2009
Banks hard pushed to reject this offer
You can almost hear the expletives ricocheting around the boardrooms of debt-laden companies across the nation as executives are ordered to find the talented lobbyist responsible for rescuing the commercial property industry...



Wed, 04 February 2009
Saving the nation
THE ailing economy has been supercharged against recession with the Government unveiling a massive $42 billion stimulus package and the Reserve Bank slashing interest rates by another 1 percentage point...



Tue, 31 March 2009
Yield of dreams: hand-picking the right fund
Amid the sharemarket turmoil, some sectors have still thrived, writes David Potts.Managed funds haven't been all bad in the past year. Just most of them.

And the ones that have been thriving are the most unlikely.

During a worldwide recession, a global equities fund posts a 46 per cent return? Sure did but you had to be in the right one.

As you'd expect, the worst one bombed badly, losing more than 70 per cent of its value in a year.

And there's one Australian share fund that almost broke even despite the fact the sharemarket had halved in value.

So sticking to cash might not have been the best strategy after all, even if it was the safest.

But its days are numbered. The Reserve Bank seems set to cut official rates to about 2.5 per cent and you can imagine what that will do to your returns from cash.

Then again, sharemarkets around the world are still volatile.

It's possible they've put the worst behind them but that doesn't mean their best is immediately ahead, either.

The next safest sector to cash, and potentially more profitable, is bond funds.



Tue, 12 May 2009
Financial News Headlines
Cut to super limits is a bit rich

Superannuation, 12 May :: 'Slug the rich." As phrases go, this is political gold. Whether it's aimed at John Howard's "battlers" or Kevin Rudd's "working families", it sends a clear message... read more

Mortgage stress defies low interest rates

Home Loans, 12 May :: Interest rates may be at historic lows in Australia but almost a third of mortgage-holders are experiencing mortgage stress, according to a new survey released by British-based research house Datamonitor... read more

Pensioners feeling the squeeze

Superannuation, 12 May :: Another quarter of negative investment returns for superannuation and pension funds means pensioners are doing it particularly tough, with many needing to contemplate a return to the workforce, according to the latest data released by research house Chant West... read more

Hourly fees will deprive many of advice: PIS

Financial Planning, 12 May :: The managing director of Australia’s largest dealer group, Professional Investment Services, has come out in support of the Financial Planning Association’s (FPA) guidance paper on the phasing out of commission payments to financial advisers, while at the same time questioning an hourly rate payment model... read more

OAMPS moves further into life insurance space

Insurance, 12 May :: OAMPS Insurance Brokers, a predominantly general insurance broking company owned by Wesfarmers, is trying to attract life insurance specialists to service its existing client book... read more

Shares hit by profit-taking

Sharemarket, 12 May :: The Australian share market finished the day weaker, pressured by banks and miners as a strong recent rally ran into profit taking, while a rush of fresh equity raisings also weighed on the market... read more

RBA forecast points to 'rates staying on hold'

Home Loans, 11 May :: A leading economist says the Reserve Bank's latest economic forecasts indicate that official interest rates will remain on hold... read more





Mon, 03 August 2009
RBA set to leave cash rate unchanged
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is expected to leave interest rates on hold in a further sign it has reached the end of its rate cutting cycle, economists say...



Mon, 10 August 2009
Stocks jump on upbeat employment data
US stocks rose on Friday to their best levels of the year after a much-awaited July jobs report was better than expected, signalling a likely turnaround in the long and painful recession...



Mon, 24 August 2009
Make the sacrifice now
Start extra super contributions and reap the benefits later, writes Bina Brown.NUMEROUS studies have shown that just contributing the 9 per cent superannuation guarantee to your retirement funds is hardly going to be enough to retire on comfortably...



Mon, 31 August 2009
IFSA calls for ‘full tax deductibility’ of advice fees
The Investment and Financial Services Association (IFSA) has called for full tax deductibility on all financial advice at an inquiry hearing today into financial products and services before the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services...



Mon, 07 September 2009
AFA backs Treasury line on planning
The Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) has made clear it will be using today’s Sydney hearings of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services to back the Department of Treasury’s view on the future shape of the financial planning industry...



Tue, 13 October 2009
Personal loans top $7 billion in August
The August data released on Monday by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed personal loans - fixed and revolving credit - rose by a seasonally adjusted 4.1 per cent compared to July to $7.18 billion.



Mon, 23 November 2009
A snug fit now, but property loans for super could vanish
SUPERANNUATION and property are the piggybanks into which most Australians pour their life's wealth. Until recently, they were treated quite differently, with superannuation locked tight to minimise risk to retirement savings but the lid on the property money box left loose...



Mon, 30 November 2009
Next generation of financial planners waits in the wings
Dealer groups must adopt programs that encourage practices to employ junior financial planners, according to e-Jobs Recruitment Specialists director Trevor Punnett...

BOOKMARK THIS WEBSITE
To add Personal Loans Australia to your favourites, simply click here.

|  home  |  news  | links  |