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American Express Delivers Solid Second Quarter Results
Second quarter profits at credit card company American Express nearly triples, and came in well ahead of analyst estimates, as spending by card holders vaulted 16 per cent. American Express also benefited from having to put away less than half as much money to cover losses as it did in the previous year.
“While spending among affluent consumers and businesses remains strong, today’s card members are borrowing less and paying down more of their outstanding debt. We remain cautious about the economy and the challenging regulatory environment.” chairman and chief Executive Kenneth Chenault said.
E*Trade Posts Second Quarter Profit
E*Trade Financial the online brokerage company has returned to profitability after posting second quarter profits for the first time in three years.
The company has not faired well after its business was negatively impacted by bad loans made by its banking division, which reported its seventh consecutive drop in loan loss provisions.
War of Words Erupts Between CBA and NAB
A war of words has erupted between two of the big four lenders, with Ralph Norris chief executive of CBA, lashing out at NAB’s claims that the lender is making super profits in mortgage lending.
The banking oligopoly in Australia is normally a cozy affair, and Mr. Norris criticizing a rival is indeed surprising.
Macquarie Looking To Sell Stake In Sprint Finance Corp
Australian investment banking major Macquarie is seeking offers valued at approximately US$3.5 billion for Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Sprint Finance Corp. If a deal is successful, it would be the largest sale of a U.S. based REIT in over three years.
The Bloomberg news service which cited unnamed sources close to the negotiations saying three publicly traded REIT’s including Lexington Realty Trust, National Retail Properties and Realty Income Corp have been approached recently. According to the sources several Private Equity firms have also expressed their interest in Sprint.
EBay Has Good Second Quarter But Sees Currency Headwinds Affecting Future Performance
EBay, the online auction site and owner of PayPal has reported second quarter profits which were better than expected, but threw a note of caution saying it expects adverse currency movements to have a negative impact on overseas sales.
According to the Bloomberg news service, Ebay’s Second-quarter net income rose 26 percent to $412.2 million, or 31 cents a share, from $327.3 million, or 25 cents a share. The company delivered earnings of 40 cents a share, with the average estimate of analysts polled by Bloomberg predicting the company would earn 38 cents a share.
NAB And Bank of New York Mellon Propose Tie Up
Australian banking major NAB says it is in talks with Bank of New York Mellon on a possible joint venture in asset servicing.
The proposed deal would see the two lenders combine forces to increase their product and service offerings to client, in an environment where there is increased demand for global capability.
Australian Economy Experiencing Robust Growth
No matter who ends up winning the upcoming Australian general election, the winner will undoubtedly have to take control of an economy growing at an above trend rate of 3.5 per cent.
According to the Westpac-Melbourne Institute leading index of economic activity which was released on Wednesday, the annualized growth rate during may was 6.7 per cent, much higher than the long term trend rate of 3.0 per cent.
RBA Undecided On Further Interest Rate Hikes
The Australian central bank has signalled that interest rates may be held steady over the next few months, if inflation data which is to be released next week is in line with forecasts.
“The important question for the board at its next meeting would be whether the new information materially changed the medium-term outlook for inflation,” Australia’s Reserve Bank said in the minutes of its policy meeting of July 6, when it left rates unchanged.
CBA Says Australian Consumer Spending Weak
A new report authored by Commonwealth Bank suggests that whilst the job market is stronger, consumer spending is at its weakest level since the height of the global financial crisis.
The Commonwealth Bank Business Sales Indicator (BSI) fell by 0.3 per cent in trend terms in June after a similar decline in May. The decline over the last quarter is the worst result since the start of 2008.
GE Capital Say Smaller Australian Lenders Still Find Funding Difficult
Non bank financial company GE Capital says raising finance for smaller lenders continues to remain difficult for smaller lenders when compared to the major banks.
Skander Malcolm who runs GE Capital in Australia says that because the banks have large depositor bases they were able to fund raise more effectively than smaller lenders such as GE Money.
