Westpac posts $6.8 billion profit, expects 11 per cent house price fall
Australia's oldest bank, Westpac, reported a $6.8 billion profit for the year to September, down 1 per cent from the previous year. It expects house prices nationally to fall 10.9 per cent between March 2026 and March 2027, and it expects interest rates to stay elevated into 2027. The forecast comes ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia's meeting on Tuesday, where the bank is widely tipped to raise rates for the fifth time this year. Westpac's net interest margin fell to 1.86 per cent in the second half, as lending competition stayed strong and more savers qualified for bonus rates. Its credit impairment provisions rose to $5.2 billion, with the bank citing economic and geopolitical uncertainty, although the share of mortgage balances in hardship stayed low at 0.6 per cent. Westpac will pay a final dividend of 77 cents a share, and its shares rose 1 per cent after the results.