Reserve Bank of Australia Annual Report – 1976 The Bank's Accounts

The financial statements show an increase of $646 million to $6,371 million in balance sheet aggregates. Factors influencing changes in the main items have been commented on in earlier parts of the Report. The major increases in liabilities occurred in Australian notes on issue and statutory reserve deposits of trading banks; these were partly offset by a reduction in deposits of governments and government instrumentalities. The increase in assets occurred mainly in Australian government securities while foreign exchange holdings declined. A further reduction was made in the unfunded adjustments arising from fluctuations in exchange rates.

Aggregate operating earnings decreased in 1975/6, mainly because of reduced earnings on the lower level of foreign exchange holdings. Exchange valuation gains of $126 million were excluded from profit and loss accounts and passed directly to exchange valuation adjustment accounts as a deduction from past exchange losses; these gains were much lower than in 1974/5. The unfunded exchange valuation adjustments were also reduced by transfers totalling $65 million from reserves for contingencies of Central Banking Business and Note Issue Department, including amounts allocated from current earnings.

The aggregate net profits of $82.3 million determined in terms of Section 78 of the Reserve Bank Act were appropriated, $80 million to the Commonwealth, $1.15 million to the Rural Credits Department Reserve Fund and $1.15 million to the Rural Credits Development Fund.