Wheeler lies on bank profits

Written By: - Date published: 10:05 am, December 5th, 2012 - 33 comments
Categories: capitalism - Tags:

Last month, new Reserve Bank Governor Graeme Wheeler told Parliament that our banks aren’t excessively profitable – middle of the pack internationally. He was lying.

Russel Norman asked the RBNZ for its evidence. The graph they supplied was a desperate attempt at deception. It omitted Europe’s banks, it compared our banks’ after-tax profits to other countries’ pre-tax profits – and our banks were still the 5th most profitable!

Wheeler’s excuse is that he didn’t have the facts in front of him when he made his false statement to our Parliament – oh well, that’s alright then!

Don’t forget, the billions in banks profits that flow over the Tasman every year are the biggest contributor to our growing international debt, behind only oil imports.

Looks like we’ve got another Reserve Bank Governor who will put the interests of the Aussie banks ahead of New Zealanders and New Zealand jobs every time.

33 comments on “Wheeler lies on bank profits ”

  1. outofbed 1

    Seems to me one of the most interesting aspects of this post is that Russel Norman and the Greens are on to it once again!

  2. vto 2

    I read somewhere recently that 25% of corporate earnings in the USA in the last year were in the banking and finance sector.

    Another sign of the end-times our system is in.

    Speaking of which – only a few days until the end of the Mayan calender. Prepare your survival packs.

  3. Lanthanide 3

    Gareth Morgan is very derisive of the past 15 years of reserve bank governance, and particularly thinks keeping the interest rate at 2.5% (one of the highest in the world) is insane at the moment.

    Hopefully we’ll get a rate reduction tomorrow, but seems unlikely.

    • geoff 3.1

      Yeah this is what I dont get, why not reduce the official cash rate by another percent? It would lower the exchange rate and give some mortgage relief to homeowners.

      • andy (the other one) 3.1.1

        Lowering the OCR will allow people to borrow larger amounts further fuelling the the current bubble we already have in the Auckland market.

        That will further push home ownership out of the hands of the battlers out on struggle street. It would also allow the mortgage holders to further leverage themselves and out bid other buyers. We need an OCR rise of 0.05% to prick the bubble that is forming..

        • Lanthanide 3.1.1.1

          No, we need the OCR to be dropped 1% and a residential mortgage tax of 1% introduced.

        • aj 3.1.1.2

          Unfortunately, the very processes required to burst the property bubble are ones that will make home affordability a problem for a larger group of people in the short term. Once you have enough people out of the lower and mid-range of the market the whole house [pardon the pun] of cards falls slowly over.
          Long term everyone will be better off.

          • Neoleftie 3.1.1.2.1

            FFS we are the fifth highest traded currency due to high interest rates. part of the new house deal should be govt mortgages via kiwi bank at a low interest rate using printed money. How about that CV.

            • Colonial Viper 3.1.1.2.1.1

              Sounds good to me. The interest rate would be very low, it would be a 30 year term, it would be for a first (and only) house, there would be tight income thresholds applicable, and strict expectations on the upkeep of the property.

        • KJT 3.1.1.3

          Rubbish.

          The reason why the banks are pushing so much money into NZ to borrow and push up house prices is, because! our interest rates are too high.

          Lowering interest rates will drop the amount of overseas loan money coming in.

          An OCR rise, (as an inflation fighting method) is an overly blunt instrument which hurts business, existing home owners and other borrowers who cannot change their circumstances.
          By all means put a tax on new loans if necessary, but the OCR is way too high when the US bank rate is effectively zero.

          • geoff 3.1.1.3.1

            Dont tax new loans, eradicicate the monopolies which have been robbing NZ blind for 30 years! ie Fletchers, Property Developer biased Councils.

            • Colonial Viper 3.1.1.3.1.1

              tax new loans as well.

              Also a massive stamp duty if you buy/sell more than one house per 5 years.

          • mikesh 3.1.1.3.2

            I suspect that the banks have an interest in keeping the dollar high. They have probably borrowed so much from overseas that a reduction in the value of the dollar would cause them big losses. Since it is borrowing that keeps the exchange rate up I think banks will continue to borrow whatever the interest rate.

        • geoff 3.1.1.4

          The housing bubble in Auckland is due to a shortage of houses, raising the OCR will do nothing to change that, it will just cause more pain for people.

          The Auckland housing shortage is due to high land prices and high building material prices.

          The price of land is due mostly to population growth (less land available per person) and councils acting in the interest of property developers and owners rather than people attempting to become property owners.

          The price of building is mostly due to Fletchers having the monopoly of building materials.

          Essentially a big part of the problem is greedy cunts.

          • Colonial Viper 3.1.1.4.1

            The housing bubble in Auckland is partly due to a shortage of houses, raising the OCR will do nothing to change that, it will just cause more pain for people.

            Just to clarify. There is more than one factor at play here. Including too many people who own 5, 6, 7, 8+ Auckland residential properties.

            • geoff 3.1.1.4.1.1

              Yeah where partly equals 90%.

              This idea that’s been circulating that ‘the problems really complicated, it’s really tough to figure out’. Total bullshit.

              Yet again personal greed amongst a minority is screwing over large segments of the country.

              I also think it’s sick that some people have multiple rentals but that isn’t why there is a housing shortage. The reason there is a shortage is simply a growing population and not enough housing to go around.

              • Colonial Viper

                The problem is complicated but I agree with you that its NOT tough to figure out.

                A few posters have already described the main problem – which I believe the housing “shortage” you are referring to is but a symptom.

                Basically, its assanine to try and fit 30% of the country’s population in 0.3% of the space. Especially as provincial towns all over the country are dying. You’re on a hiding to nothing.

        • Draco T Bastard 3.1.1.5

          We need an OCR rise of 0.05% to prick the bubble that is forming..

          That failed to work on the last bubble. IN fact, IMO, it fuelled it as the high interest rates dragged in huge amounts of hot money – just like what’s happening now.

          • KJT 3.1.1.5.1

            And delivered a double whammy to our exporters of both a higher interest rate than overseas competitors and an overvalued dollar.

            One of the main reasons why our manufacturing sector is dying. The stupidity of the reserve bank act, 30 years past its use by date, clobbering the economy whenever it starts to get off the ground.

  4. AAMC 4

    Lots of talk of legal action about to be taken against Oz banks for sub prime lending, so as alway, the story will evolve. A small correction in asset prices when the bubble bursts and their all bankrupt rather than overly profitable because of their leverage. Fun times.

    • Colonial Viper 4.1

      They’ll very quickly have their hand out for a tax payer bail out. And if we refuse they will threaten to sink our economy. The bankster game is a well practiced art.

  5. PlanetOrphan 5

    Nice of the reserve bank to prop up foreign institutions with NZ money …
    I wonder how much is left after the decades of idiotic management of our economy.

    None would be my guess, that’s why DunnoKeyo is borrowing money from external economies ….

    That’ll help Aoteoroa aye M8!

    Bloody Gnats’

  6. muzza 6

    Didn’t take him long to slip right into the M.O of lying, then giving a pathetic excuse for doing so. The again what is expected of ex World Banker, who as been dropped into position, as the *independent governer*, of the *independent RBNZ*. Little more can be expected of the man who represents the powers which control NZ’s monetary system!

    Also, people need to stop thinking as the Ozzie banks as the owners of our banking system, they’re not. Look at where the ownership of the Ozzie banks rolls up to, and one will find the familiar territory..

    So when we talk about profits heading to OZ, in fact that is only the next level up!

  7. Funny, a Kiwi born US banker who made his mark in one of the most corrupt banking entities in the world opens his mouth and oh oops, he’s lying. Why am I not surprised?

  8. Colonial Viper 8

    Forget dropping the OCR to give relief to mortgage holders in NZ. Its bullshit as the banks only pass a portion of the rates cut along and keeps the rest as extra profit margin. No matter what happens, the banks win.

    Current example in Australia – central bank rates are cut 25bps but only 20bps saving is passed along to the consumer. The bank keeps the remaining as ADDITIONAL profit on top of what they are making now.

    http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/financial-services/nab-passes-on-20bp-of-the-rbas-25bp-rate-cut/story-fn91wd6x-1226530291662

    Fucking banksters. Now with the new RB Governor it looks like we have a bankster wolf guarding the hen house. This is going to turn out well for our country.

  9. QoT 9

    For posterity, here’s a link to the Stuff article on it (because we bloggers are not to be trusted.)

    Beyond that, all I have to say is “WTF?” and “When you don’t know the answer, and you make up an answer instead of admitting you don’t know, that’s kinda the definition of a lie, Graeme.”

  10. Dv 10

    AND the banks pass on decreases in rates slower than rises over the last 20 years.

  11. Karl Sinclair 11

    Banks = Establishment Preservation = Persevering the Status Quo MonKEYs

    1. Establish a sophisticated surveillance system (The Panopticon or SIS = JKeys Fluffers)
    2. Ensure the voting public are uninformed
    3. Eliminate Logical/Critical Thought (education that is supposedly one of the best in the world that is only dedicated working not thinking….)
    4. Support belief systems that support passive obedience (framing thought)
    5. Establish Herd Psychology – Establish a deep fear of social rejection & associate that fear with culturally taboo subjects (oh like your odd if you belong to a union or are interested in politics and want to question who thes banking xxxxes really are and and and and… how are those all blacks doing again?)

    Culture in Decline | Episode #1 “What Democracy?” by Peter Joseph http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTbLslkIR2k

    • muzza 11.1

      Thats right Karl, humanity is busily being distracted while it ties the knot for the noose that its putting around its own neck, and its partners, and its childrens!

      Ka mate

  12. RedBaron 12

    Push the NRWT rate through the roof. That’s non resident withholding tax rate and make sure it’s covering a wide enough field to make hot money hurt! Take out any cut out’s i.e putting investments in a company and taking the dividend off shore.

  13. jamie prentice 13

    Its pretty simple to solve really, all profits bank make must stay in the country and invested in our country. Who runs this country?

    Then you will here the pigs squealling. Whos country is this? Ours or the banks?  

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