Consumers shrug off the gloom
CONSUMER confidence has reached a 15-week high, despite climbing petrol prices, pessimism around sluggish wage growth and falling house prices.
The weekly ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence index rose for a sixth straight week, climbing 0.7 per cent to 121.6 points on the back of upbeat household views around current and future financial conditions.
ANZ’s head of Australian economics, David Plank, says petrol prices have risen recently and commentary has been pessimistic around wages, the housing market and last week’s mixed employment data.
“Even so, households remained upbeat on their financial conditions last week,” Mr Plank said yesterday.
Views towards current financial conditions rose 2 per cent in the week to May 20, hitting its highest level in three months, while sentiment around future conditions grew modestly, up 0.6 per cent.
But confidence around cur- rent economic conditions showed no change after a solid 2.4 per cent increase the previous week, while views towards future economic conditions dipped 1.9 per cent.
Mr Plank said although views towards economic conditions eased slightly in the past week, it was “unsurprising” given the strength of its recovery in recent weeks.
The next set of major domestic data that could impact confidence will be the first quarter gross domestic product figures due out of June 6.