Younger Australians are rebuilding their savings as easing inflationary pressures and tax cuts boost confidence, the nation’s biggest home lender says.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia posted a record annual profit of just over $10 billion on Wednesday, saying the economy is at a key juncture after four years of cost-of-living struggles.
“While we recognise many are still finding the context challenging, there is some positive momentum,” CEO Matt Comyn said in a video accompanying the results.
CBA became the first of the big four banks to pass on a reduction in borrowing rates on Tuesday, after the Reserve Bank of Australia eased monetary policy for the third time this year.
The Reserve cut the cash interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.60 per cent, raising hopes of more cuts in the months ahead.
“Economic growth remains below trend but is recovering,” Comyn said.
“Inflation is back within the target band and what we expect to be a modest rate-cutting cycle is underway.”
However, even though consumer confidence had improved and disposable income had risen, household budgets remained stretched.
As well, the world economy remained unpredictable and volatile due to the imposition of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imports to the US.
CBA posted an underlying cash profit of $10.3 billion for 2024/25, up 4 per cent on the previous financial year.
The bottom line result was broadly in line, at $10.1 billion to reflect an 8 per cent improvement.
The boosted profit was driven by lending volume growth, a stable underlying net interest margin, which is the money banks make from their lending activities.
CBA also reported a stabilisation in home loan arrears, with 85 per cent of customers now ahead of their scheduled repayments.
The bank still provided 139,000 tailored payment arrangements to help customers manage mortgages and consumer finance repayments over the year.
The bank’s operating expenses weighed in at $12.9 billion in the year to June 30, equating to a rise of 6 per cent.
Higher operating costs were driven by inflation and a $900 million technology investment to fight scams and fraud activity.
CBA is now sending 10 times more alerts warning customers about suspicious transactions through its banking app.
At the same time, it has stopped $800 million worth of scam payments and said it was using nation-leading artificial intelligence bots to confront scammers on voice calls and WhatsApp chats.
CBA will pay a $2.60 final dividend, taking its total payout for the year to $4.85 per share, up four per cent from a year ago.
CBA shares ended at $178.80 at the close of trading on Tuesday.
-AAP
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