Final report of Australian banking royal commission to be released
Today, the banking royal commission’s final report will be released to the Australian public.
The report is expected to detail financial misconduct on the part of all four of Australia’s major banks, which account for some 80% of mortgage loans and possess combined assets worth $2.6 trillion—double Australia’s nominal GDP. The misconduct will prompt sweeping changes in the mortgage broking industry, like regulating broker commissions from the large banks.
Some critics have claimed that regulation will hamper Australia’s economic growth, especially when coupled with a global economy that may slow due to the US-China trade war and Italy’s slip back into recession in late 2018.
Looking ahead to Australia’s federal elections in May, PM Scott Morrison’s conservative coalition is widely expected to be ousted by the centre-left Labor Party, which has emphasised mortgage and property reforms that could contribute to an economic contraction. More worrying is Australia’s 2018 GDP growth rate, which is forecast to have been 2.8%, far below the year’s 3.5% target. Australia will probably experience slowed economic growth in early 2019 and could possibly tilt toward recession for the first time in 28 years.
