This week in banking news - energy prices, home loans, Qantas car insurance and the AUD vs the Yen

• Analysis from the St Vincent De Paul Society shows a huge difference in energy prices across Australia.
• Westpac makes home loans available to property investors with 10% deposits.
• HSBC announces new cuts to 3 year fixed home loan rate.
• AUD stronger than Japanese Yen, following Japan’s economic downturn.
• Qantas launches new Qantas car insurance.
• Analysis from St Vincent De Paul finds drop in energy prices.

All in this week's banking recap.

Analysis from St Vincent De Paul finds drop in energy prices

Analysis conducted by the St Vincent De Paul Society for its annual Tariff-Tracking report reveals that regulation changes, including the newly introduced Default Market Offer (DMO) and Victorian Default Offer (VDO) have had a huge difference on energy prices across Australia.

As a result of the DMO and VDO, both of which were introduced this year, a number of energy retailers have dropped their base rates. The report even suggested that dual fuel customers in Sydney may be receiving an even smaller energy bill in the near future.

Westpac opens doors to investors with 10% deposits

As of this week, Westpac is now offering property investors home loans with a deposit requirement of just 10%. The major bank has increased its loan-to-value (LVR) cap for interest-only investment loans from 80% to 90%. This means that investors will now only have to come up with a 10% deposit when applying for a mortgage.

HSBC slashes 3 year fixed home loan rate 

In more home loan news, HSBC eagerly joined the 2% club, cutting its 3-year-fixed home loan rate down to 2.75% p.a. (3.45% p.a. comparison rate*). This enticing new deal is available with the bank’s Premier Fixed Rate Home Loan, for new customers borrowing over $50,000.

This new rate aligns the 3 year fixed rate with the 1 year and 2 year fixed rates, which both stand at 2.75% p.a. The new 3 year rate is available for owner-occupiers making principal and interest repayments.

AUD grows stronger against Japanese Yen

As the Japanese Yen continues to drop in value and the Aussie dollar grows stronger in comparison, now might be the time to plan that trip to Japan you’ve been dreaming about for so long. 

Following a recent economic downturn, the Japanese Yen isn’t doing so well, meaning that any Aussies looking to transfer their hard earned dollars into Yen right now, might just be able to get a bit more bang for their buck. 

Excited to find out more? Why not head to Mozo’s international money transfer (IMT) page to see how many Yen you could snag for your dollar.

Qantas launches new car insurance

Following on with the theme of travel, Qantas launched its brand new Qantas Car Insurance this week and you guessed it, like most other Qantas products you can bag a pretty tidy sum of Qantas Points.

Qantas Frequent Flyers who take out Qantas Car Insurance will be able to earn up to 20,000 Qantas Points, plus 1 point for every dollar spent on their premium.

Plus, if you sign up to the policy you’ll also be able to earn 6,000 points for ensuring the safety of your vehicle, this means performing brake and tyre checks and booking your car in for a service regularly.

All this talk of car insurance got you thinking about your policy? Why not check out the plans below to make sure you’re getting the best deal for your wheels.