Nothing to say at CBA

Commonwealth Bank is increasingly the champion of saying nothing, even when compelled through habit and law to front an army of underemployed shareholders for a couple of hours at the annual meeting.

The bank's chair and managing director at this ritual in Sydney yesterday said nothing new on either the bank's recent trading, outlook or plans on the most sensitive question of the day, namely the pricing of residential mortgages in Australia.

On this last point all the CEO Ralph Norris would tell reporters at the event was that "we have not made a decision", the same ritualistic response from all those banks guarding the publication of decisions they have, in fact, made.

Verifying this point today's newspaper carry advertisements for increases in interest rares on the bank's margin loan products, also effective from today.