![China challenge tipped for big Aussie banks](/pf/resources/images/placeholders/placeholder_l.png?d=795)
China challenge tipped for big Aussie banks
Reserve Bank deputy governor Grant Spencer says the arrival of Asian banking giants is a watershed event that will boost competition and keep the dominant lenders "on their toes".
Reserve Bank deputy governor Grant Spencer says the arrival of Asian banking giants is a watershed event that will boost competition and keep the dominant lenders "on their toes".
The New Zealand economy has managed the ultimate "Houdini" act by avoiding the inflationary pressures that usually go along with strong growth, Westpac said.
Westpac NZ's record annual cash profit of $864m confirms a bumper year for the big banks. In fact, at $4.1b, that's almost $1000 for every man, woman and child in NZ.
Westpac NZ has reported a 13 per cent rise in annual cash earnings to $864m helped by a rise in lending and improving bad debts.
A man's jaw was broken when he was struck in the face with a golf ball during Labour weekend.
Westpac has changed its business model after discovering landlords are on the rise with their share of house sales up from 37 per cent a year ago to 42 per cent last month.
The gap between what New Zealand earns from the rest of the world through trade and investment and what it pays widened in the June quarter as falling dairy exports started to weigh on the trade balance.
A man has been seriously injured after a piece of machinery fell out of the back of a ute, crushing him underneath it.
Westpac New Zealand says it is gearing up to release a world first banking app that will allow customers to view their account details in 3D.
Shane Andrews was riding to work across a bridge when a driver distracted by the swollen Waimakariri River crossed the centre line and knocked him into the river.
Australia is forecast to be among the fastest-growing economies this year, making it harder for the central bank to convince currency investors it won't raise interest rates.
The Reserve Bank's curbs on bank lending to low deposit borrowers could be removed by the end of the year.
An improving economy and a massive reduction in bad loans helped Westpac New Zealand post a record half-year profit.
New Zealand architects, including Auckland's much-awarded Andrew Patterson, have been critical of Australian practices winning big jobs here.
Australia's major banks are scrambling to distance themselves from dealings with companies accused illegal or immoral practices
Campaigners are out to hit the fossil fuel industry where it hurts, by making it an unacceptable place to invest. Peter Huck reports
Westpac's New Zealand boss earned more than $3 million in 2013 despite taking a pay cut.
New Zealand's big four banks collectively made more than $3.5 billion in the last year in another record year for the sector.
Westpac chief executive Peter Clare says the bank's rivals have been left with a "hangover" after pushing forward with mortgage pre-approvals.
The big four Australian banks made more than A$27 billion (NZT $31b) in profits in the past year, making Australasia's banking sector one of the world's most successful.