Westpac Shares Slip as Coming Rate Cuts Seen to Hurt Margins
The Westpac Place building in Sydney, Australia.
Photographer: Brendon Thorne/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Westpac Banking Corp.’s shares retreated as interest rate reductions threaten margins and analysts warned the lender’s push in business lending is being hurt by a tighter funding market.
Net income dropped 1% to A$3.32 billion ($2.14 billion) from the previous year in the six months to March 31, in line with analyst estimates. Expenses at Westpac ticked higher as investment climbed in its technology revamp, known as UNITE. The stock lost as much as 3.8% in early Sydney trading on Monday, before paring some losses.