Consumer Confidence Dips 0.7 Points, Roy Morgan Reports

It now sits at 109.2 as of February 20/21 and is now one point below the 2021 weekly average of 110.2. However, it remains 0.9 points above the same period last year, indicating positive growth across the country.

The report found that there was also a slight dip in Australians saying that now was a ‘good time’ to buy a major household item, sitting at 40 percent, down 2ppts. In contrast, 27 percent say that now is a ‘bad time’ to buy a major household item, which has increased by 2ppts.

“Consumer confidence has fallen for the third week in a row, despite the easing of lockdown restrictions in Victoria,” explained David Plank, the ANZ Head of Australian Economics.

“Indeed, Regional Victoria led the fall with confidence deteriorating 10.5 percent. This could possibly be a catch-up to last week’s surprise rise in regional sentiment.”

Regarding economic conditions, 27 percent of Australians expect ‘good times’ for the economy over the next five years, up 3ppts. Only 13 percent of Australian expect ‘bad times’ for the economy over the next five years, which has increased by 1ppt.

“Within the detail, the softness in ‘time to buy a major household item’ is interesting given the current strength of the housing market. We would expect the two to go hand-in-hand, so the relative softness of this aspect of sentiment may not endure,” said Plank.

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