SYDNEY: Commonwealth Bank of Australia( CBA), the country’s largest lender, has announced a record A$ 6bil( US$ 4. 41bil or RM18. 69bil) share buyback as an economic rebound from the pandemic pushed its annual cash profit up almost a fifth. Australia’s early control of the pandemic in 2020 and the resulting swift economic rebound have driven property prices and credit growth higher, boosting banks coffers. But a re-emergence of the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus and ongoing l

A triple killer is facing life in jail after pleading guilty to the horrifying murder of a mother, her son and another woman during a five-day killing spree. Anthony Russell, 39, murdered Julie Williams, 58, and her son David, 32, at separate flats in Coventry over two consecutive days in October 2020.... He then murdered his third and final victim, 31-year-old Nicole McGregor after her body was found dead on grassland in Leamington only days later. Russell is also accused of raping Ms McGregor

SYDNEY Commonwealth Bank of Australia on Wednesday posted a jump in first-half profit and said it would buy back shares worth A$ 2 billion($ 1.43 billion) as strong lending growth cushioned the hit from intense competition for home loans. The bank said its lending growth outpaced rivals in both the business and home segments in the last six months of 2021, riding on a recovery in the economy from the pandemic. But its margins narrowed to 1.92% from 2.06% a year earlier and were 17 basis points b

SYDNEY: Australia’s banking regulator raised the minimum interest-rate buffer that lenders need to account for when assessing home-loan applications, citing growing risks to financial stability from a booming housing market. The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority( APRA) told lenders it expects them to assess new borrowers’ ability to meet loan repayments at an interest rate that is at least three percentage points above the loan product rate, according to a statement yesterday. That’s up