90 seconds at 9 am with BNZ

90 seconds at 9 am with BNZ: Petricevic denied legal aid, Aussie flood costs mount, global stocks rally

19th Jan 11, 9:00am by Gareth Vaughan

Gareth Vaughan details the key news overnight in 90 seconds at 9 am in association with Bank of New Zealand.

Rod Petricevic, the former managing director of failed property financier Bridgecorp, has been denied taxpayer funded legal aid but has been given time to decide whether to appeal the decision.

Petricevic and Bridgecorp’s former finance director Rob Roest are facing criminal charges brought by the Serious Fraud Office after Bridgecorp collapsed in July 2007 owing over 14,000 investors NZ$459 million. The company’s receivers estimate investors’ are likely to get back less than 10 cents in the dollar.

Petricevic, who authorities believe has money in a family trust, can apply to the Legal Aid Review Panel for a review of the decision not to grant him legal aid.

Meanwhile, Australian companies may lose more than half a billion dollars in earnings this financial year following the floods in Queensland and Victoria. The hardest hit sectors are expected to include insurance, transport, engineering and mining.

The Australian newspaper reports that analysts estimate the total cost to corporate earnings has already reached A$431.3 million.

And Goldman Sachs estimates the Queensland floods could place about A$5 billion worth of mortgages and commercial loans at risk of default. Goldman says there could be defaults on 16,500 home loans, or A$4.1 billion worth, in Queensland's southeast. It also estimates 2,950 commercial loans, worth A$737 million, might default. There are also estimates that property prices in Brisbane's riverside suburbs could slump by up to 50% after the floods.

Global stocks have risen to a two year high with the euro gaining and German bonds falling after European finance ministers pledged to strengthen the safety net for heavily indebted countries. Euro-area finance ministers are mulling ways to give their 750 billion euro rescue fund more flexibility and haven’t ruled out boosting its size.

In the United States the S&P 500 index traded near its highest level since August 2008 following seven straight weeks of gains, its longest rally in almost four years.

No chart with that title exists.

We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment

Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making such comments. Our current comment policy is here.

24 Comments

by Rob of the North | 19th Jan 11, 9:09am 1295381347

it would be interesting to hear readers opinions on what effect the qsld floods and mortgage defaults etc will have on the qsld and australian housing market?

by Wolly | 19th Jan 11, 9:25am 1295382321

Go check out yesterday's Money Morning report Rob...all the detail you could wish for...

by muzza | 19th Jan 11, 3:53pm 1295405626

Kris Sayce of Morning Report , the guy who tries to flog his get-rich schemes on the stock market?

by Gareth Vaughan | 19th Jan 11, 9:28am 1295382539

And if the Aussie banks take a hit from the floods, as seems likely, what does it mean for their subsidiaries over here?

by Rob of the North | 19th Jan 11, 9:31am 1295382711

PM Julia Gilliard is floating ( excuse the pun) the idea of putting an extra tax on the Oz public to cover the projected 20 billion flood damage cost to the country...whew?

by Wolly | 19th Jan 11, 10:06am 1295384766

Oh yeah...great idea Jewleya...don't let the Kiwi families flooded out, have any though...and make sure they pay your new tax...make it permanent...that way you can slice more pork to buy more votes next time round...

by Christov | 19th Jan 11, 1:23pm 1295396586

Well Gareth...the natural response would be to offload some of the burden onto their shitkicker country cousins.......just as well milk solids are holding their own eh..?

by Rob of the North | 19th Jan 11, 9:27am 1295382462

ha ha...already read it y/day...just thought i'd get the ball rolling...now about that cut'n'paste that you're using all the time Wally?Wolly..

by scarfie | 19th Jan 11, 9:29am 1295382555

While I have no doubt the Petrecevic has ferrited away funds offshore or into family trusts, is it possible that denying him legal aid was political and perhaps not a good idea.

If they are confident he has has the money hidden in trusts, and since they have control of his assets anyway, then the legal aid is only a loan and will be taken out of his assets. Only flip side is if they seize the assets anyway, thus the legal aid is a gift.

But more to the point if they granted legal aid then the court should appoint his lawyer.

Legal Aid also works by granting a fixed fee for each part of the process, and each part has to be applied for and justified by his lawyer. By him having legal aid there is more opportunity to control the costs of the court case by reining in any spurious arguments or diversions.

Legal Aid could work out cheaper in the long run, but am open arguments:)

by Gareth Vaughan | 19th Jan 11, 9:42am 1295383325

Prices up 1.2% in the latest Fonterra auction - http://www.globaldairytrade.info/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=430

by Rob of the North | 19th Jan 11, 10:21am 1295385665

Kiwis have to have lived in OZ prior to 2002 to receive any flood relief but the NZ Embassy and Johnny Key are working with the OZ Govt. to resolve that right now...it's only a grant of 1000 bucks per family but still.

by Wolly | 19th Jan 11, 10:50am 1295387429

But still... it smells worse than the mud left from the floods. The same Kiwi families have paid taxes over there...are part of the communities...or are they taxed less...given fat rebates...fat bloody chance.

by Rob of the North | 19th Jan 11, 11:08am 1295388488

The same rules apparently apply to Australians living here.

With all your whingeing i figured you probably were an Aussie, Wolly...but then again all Aussies are Wally's so...ah, never mind !

Just shuddupya face !!

by Gummy Bear Hero | 19th Jan 11, 11:17am 1295389041

It's in the nature of the beast that when the chips are down , Aussies close ranks and look after their own ........ Bugger the new immigrants and non-citizens ........... In New Zealand we do things the other way around .

by Christov | 19th Jan 11, 1:32pm 1295397127

Yes...it's a laugh ind'it.....the Americans don't know the meaning of "Give us your tired..your poor.. your stupid ...your lazy.....your malcontent........"....gosh we're such a giving breed...can't find a job..?.....increase your family numbers...!....Bingo.

I just can't wait to see what the backwash brings as it flows out into the Tasman.

by David George | 19th Jan 11, 11:05am 1295388318

"Petricevic, who authorities believe has money in a family trust, can apply to the Legal Aid Review Panel for a review of the decision not to grant him legal aid."

Prior to TSHTF Petricevic was busy laundering his ill gotten gains via his family trust. The property I am aware of involved an offer from his trust for several million dollars. I have no doubt that the "authorities" will uncover huge fraud and hidden accounts and property.

He now wants the Kiwi taxpayer to fund his defense? Creep.

by muzza | 19th Jan 11, 5:32pm 1295411579

Yes he is a git but think he's just trying to drag things out, grt a delay in proceedings for this and then another delay for something else. He probably won't get jail for some time yet!!

But unless he's in the Masonic Lodge or something and can get a sympathetic Lodge member as judge (just joking) he should get jail !

by Rob of the North | 19th Jan 11, 11:10am 1295388654

Australian bank valuations

We see bank valuations as currently supportive (providing downside protection), with regulatory and political risks now becoming less uncertain/more quantifiable, and funding pressures abating near term. While we see fundamental earnings growth challenges again in FY11E, we expect underlying profit growth to improve in FY12E on the back of an expected modest recovery in business credit growth.

Our analysts order of preference is ANZ, NAB, WBC, CBA. (most of the argument for ANZ comes from the bias towards netter returning corporate banking and the future ANZ South-East Asian growth option…..I wonder if Asia slows then perhaps more kudos should be given to CBA with its domestic exposure) Additionally we have a positive view on MQG reflecting scope for market leverage to be compoundedby operational and financial leverage.

by Gareth Vaughan | 19th Jan 11, 1:13pm 1295395984

Who is that from Rob?

by Rob of the North | 19th Jan 11, 5:02pm 1295409736

First NZ

by Rob of the North | 19th Jan 11, 11:15am 1295388903

WE cross live now for more fallout on the Qsld flooding:

" property developers, with Mirvac featuring prominently, face legal action and other costs from Brisbane riverside projects being hit, according to The Australian: "The future of up to 600 off-the-plan apartment sales worth $577 million in inner Brisbane could be contested – some in the courts – in the wake of the devastating floods. The issues facing new apartment sales could mirror those of the global financial crisis, according to Damian Hackett, chief executive of Brisbane-based Place Estate Agents. He said there were unconditional sales contracts on about 596 inner Brisbane properties worth $577m. The Commonwealth Bank, Westpac and the ANZ said they were working on a case-by-case basis and would support customers affected by the floods." According to a report on Tuesday in The Australian, Mirvac has nearly $400 million of unsold units in three projects that have flooded."

by Doug | 19th Jan 11, 11:15am 1295388933

There is nothing new about financiers applying for legal aid. The tactic is pure theatre to convince the court, and court of public opinion that they too have been left destitute. If he ever sees the inside of a jail cell there is little doubt his lolly account will be topped up on a regular basis. Madoff claimed he was broke too.

by Wolly | 19th Jan 11, 1:45pm 1295397901

Pick the odd one out! Both are leads to stories on Google business news about NZ....

"The labour market is showing strong signs of recovery, with one in four employers planning to take on new permanent workers, according to the Hudson Report on employment expectations."

"Languishing house prices, higher petrol and food prices, and October's GST hike are all having a negative effect on sales in the retail sector."

by Wolly | 19th Jan 11, 3:10pm 1295403041

Want to know why the ANZ is pissed that farmers are repaying debt?...well do you?....

"Fisher was the first major proponent of the quantity theory of money. Mises disposed of the theory (pp. 142–45, and following).

... Fisher's theory ... is the basis of all measurements of prices. He is the founder of the price index. His ideas were adopted by Milton Friedman and, through him, spread to the Chicago School of monetarists.

In the Great Depression, he got his reward. In the fall of 1929, he publicly made the announcement that finished his reputation. The Wikipedia entry summarizes what happened.

"Stock prices have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau." Irving Fisher stated on October 21 that the market was "only shaking out of the lunatic fringe" and went on to explain why he felt the prices still had not caught up with their real value and should go much higher. On Wednesday, October 23, he announced in a bankers meeting security values in most instances were not inflated. For months after the Crash, he continued to assure investors that a recovery was just around the corner.

He had invented the Rolodex. He lost his fortune in the depression. He had invested his sister-in-law's fortune. She lost everything. At the time of his retirement in 1935, he was destitute. Yale let him stay in his faculty home rent-free.

He then retroactively invented an explanation of the collapse of prices: debt deflation. He blamed the depression on the repayment of debt. He did not blame fractional reserve banking. He did not blame the contraction of money due to bank failures. This theory was as wrong as his monetary theory had been.

This theory of debt contraction is dominant today. It guides the policies of Bernanke and the rest of the world's central banks. This is why they are all inflating.

http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/Article25666.html