The big banks have seen their profit fall slightly, indicating that more cuts to home loan rates are unlikely.
The combined first half profit at Australia's big four banks has fallen five per cent as the global financial crisis starts to take effect.
Westpac, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ and National Australia Bank generated a combined $8.83 billion profit in the first half of their financial years, compared with $9.27 billion the year before.
Westpac, the biggest bank by market value, rounded out the results on Wednesday, with net profit falling 1.2 per cent to $2.18 billion. "We've seen in the last six months the environment deteriorate rapidly and we think the next six months will remain a very tough operating environment," chief executive Gail Kelly said.
Whether home loan rates will fall again remains to be seen. Last month the Reserve Bank of Australia cut official rates by 25 basis points, but none of the banks passed on the cut in full. This month, the RBA left rates unchanged and home loan rates have also been untouched.
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