Prof it slump to $29m for Tourism Holdings

in the US, and 15 per cent down in Australia, offset by 8 per cent higher sales in New Zealand, although short of targets especially for minivan sales.

Vehicle sales was the key issue. Total sales for the year were down 515 on the 2408 sold in 2018. The situation was different in the separate markets.

Overall revenue from all divisions was down 1 per cent to $423m for the year ending June 2019.

Income from the company’s Waitomo business fell to $41.4m from $41.8m last year as growth in visitor numbers slowed in the tourism market generally.

The Kiwi Experience backpacker division saw significant falls in backpacker arrivals from Europe year, prompting cost reductions and marketing initiatives to promote new product lines.

Tourism Holdings paid a final dividend of 14 cents a shares bringing the full year dividend to 27 cents a share, the same as 2018. Reserve Bank governor Adrian Orr aimed another shot at the big four Australian-owned banks, warning that none of them were too big to fail.

‘‘There’s always been a concept: too big to close,’’ Orr said. ‘‘[But] Nothing’s too big to fail’’.

Orr also warned that if one of the big four banks were to close, it would bring the other three down with it. ‘‘...If any one of those closed it would bring the rest down.’’

Orr made the remarks in an interview with the Australian Financial Review at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, during the annual meeting of the world’s central bankers.

The stability of New Zealand’s big four Australian-owned banks has been a contentious issue for him.

The Reserve Bank has proposed to radically increase the amount of capital the banks have to hold relative to the lending they do. It estimates this could cost up to 70 per cent of bank profits over the next five years, or $20 billion.

The banks have said this could have drastic consequences on the sector, including raising the cost of lending.

Orr also used the interview to call for more fiscal stimulus in New Zealand and Australia.

With central banks in both countries cutting interest rates to prop up the economy, the focus has now shifted to what governments can do.

Orr said that while there had been much talk of low interest rates, there had not yet been substantive discussion of a fiscal policy. ‘‘What didn’t I hear? Very little if no discussion around the role of fiscal policy,’’ Orr said. ‘‘...This is a time for the other significant lever of economic management to be doing its job, particularly when there are such obvious jobs to be done around the infrastructure deficits, the skills that are needed, health, welfare, demographics, ageing.’’