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The banks have had an exceptionally strong financial year 2020-21, with industry profitability surging by over 20 per cent compared to a year earlier. According to APRA’s latest release, authorised dept-taking institutions (ADI) experienced a 23.5 per cent lift in net profit after tax to $32.3 billion at the end of June 2021, confirming the industry’s resilience amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Total assets edged up 1.0 per cent to $5,382.7 billion, while the ADI’s total capital base added 11.5 per cent to $387.1 billion.

However, despite holding strong capital and liquidity positions, along with improved profitability, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) noted that the outlook for ADI’s appears uncertain given the challenges currently faced by the industry from the Delta variant of COVID-19 and ongoing lockdowns. In residential mortgage lending, in particular, APRA noted that the share of new lending with high debt-to-income ratios increased over the quarter, continuing to be influenced by the low-interest rate environment and increasing house prices. In fact, residential mortgages increased 4.7 per cent to $1,935.2 billion, with owner-occupiers making up the bulk of the total sum or $1,234.1 billion – up 8.7 per cent on the year.

The rest of this article can be found at investordaily.com.au.

BBC

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IFM Investors has pledged to achieve net zero by 2050 by among other things restricting investments in any assets that derive material amounts of revenue from thermal coal. While targeting net zero by 2050, IFM Investors has set a 2030 interim emissions reduction target of 40 per cent of its existing infrastructure portfolio from 2019 levels. The company said it will reach the ambitious goal by targeting zero coal exposure for its existing portfolio by 2030, and by continuing to invest in essential infrastructure assets in sectors such as transport, utilities and energy.

“To continue delivering on our purpose, which is to protect and grow the long-term retirement savings of working people, it’s vital that we have a plan to mitigate the risks of climate change,” said IFM Investors chief executive David Neal. “We’re confident that the measures we are putting in place for our infrastructure portfolios are real, achievable and, we believe, in the best interests of our investors, their members and beneficiaries.” Last year IFM established a taskforce to identify how each asset class – infrastructure, listed equities, debt, and private equity – would contribute to its overarching goal to target net zero by 2050.

The rest of this article can be found at investordaily.com.au.

InvestorDaily

InvestorDaily

InvestorDaily