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Westpac chief Brian Hartzer predicts long-lasting services boom for Australian economy; Interest rates are low. Lower dollar having a positive effect on tourism, education, retail.
Topic Started: 17 Sep 2015, 02:56 PM (566 Views)
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Westpac chief Brian Hartzer predicts services boom

September 17, Clancy Yeates

Westpac chief Brian Hartzer is predicting a long-lasting "services boom" for the economy that will help make up for the resources slump, creating significant growth opportunities for small and medium businesses.

As economic growth is held back by weak business investment, Mr Hartzer on Wednesday dismissed warnings Australia is at risk of recession by highlighting the growth, and potential, of the services sector.

Mr Hartzer also joined other business leaders in throwing his support behind new Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, backing Mr Turnbull's positive take on "digital disruption".

In a speech outlining his long-term ambitions for the bank, Mr Hartzer said the lender would target certain sectors where it believed growth would be much stronger than economy-wide growth, which he conceded would be "subdued for some time".

He said Westpac was eyeing "growth highways" that include small and medium enterprises, wealth management, and businesses that are tapped into the rapid rise of Asia's middle class.

"There's been a lot of talk recently about slower growth in the Australian economy. Some even suggest we might be heading for recession. We don't see it that way," Mr Hartzer said at a Trans-Tasman Business Circle lunch in Sydney.

"Interest rates are low, and the lower dollar is already having a positive effect on a number of industries like tourism, education, and retail," he said.

"The big story is the shift to a service-led economy, rather than a resource-led economy."

The combined value of services exports was higher than that of iron ore, coal, and natural gas, he said, and this was likely to accelerate as Asia's middle class trebled in size to 3 billion people.

"The rise of a huge middle class across Asia will create a services boom for innovative and competitive companies that will last far longer than the initial phase of the mining boom," he said.

Joining other corporate leaders, he welcomed Mr Turnbull's rise to the prime ministership and said it was important for business to work with the government on lifting confidence in the private sector.

Westpac is eyeing small and medium businesses as a key priority, and Mr Hartzer said it had $30 billion ready to be conditionally approved quickly through a new online system.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/westpac-chief-brian-hartzer-predicts-services-boom-20150916-gjnzw5.html
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