bvw1705, when you thoughtfully look at pay rates for the like of the top RBA boys some issues stand out.
If we pay our top RBA execs as if they were politicians then we'd get what we deserve; monkeys for peanuts.
Parliament is a zoo as it stands so let's not allow the RBA to turn into a zoological freak show as well.
Now, with interest rates and Glen Stevens: in most of the so called developed world countries with very sick economies, interest rates set by their CBs are very low but in reality when you look at the rates charged by lending institutions in those countries it is obvious that their margins are excessive or they've had to borrow dearer money offshore (as our banks do).
Check out the floating mortgage rate in the US for example. Our banks are saints compared to the US version.
Glen and his very merry board have a tight rope to walk and have had the enviable lot to squash some very sensitive political toes. You see that's what I like about our system; Stevens is out of the loop and the likes of our less than savory heads of government just have to wear what he dishes out.
And also of interest is that the RBA is almost redundant. Glen could loose his job. Australia is becoming more like the US where the RBA (as a front for the banks) acts more and more like the FED.
Our big four can adjust interest rates at will without the need for the RBA. Our reserve bank is being used by the banks as a front for interest rate manipulation.
Cheer up and look to the bright side of interest rates. If Australia had CB rates of <2% we'd have a problem economy, high unemployment and a teetering financial system.
It seems that interest rates are a barometer for financial stability.
