Big dive in confidence

CONFIDENCE among the nation’s corporate leaders has fallen to its lowest point in more than two years as clouds over the global economy darken, a leading survey has found.

And close to half of Australian board members expect the Reserve Bank to cut the official cash rate to a new historic low within the next year as unemployment rises, the survey says.

The findings are part of the Australian Institute of Company Directors biannual survey of directors sentiment to be released today.

Overall confidence has fallen over 21 points to minus 16.9 points over the past six months, the survey of more than 900 directors across Australia shows. A negative read on the index means director are feeling pessimistic about the economic outlook.

It is the first time the survey has posted a negative read since the first half of 2017.

Board members in Victoria were the most optimistic, while those in Queensland were the least.

AICD chief Angus Armour said the pessimism has been driven by a fall in confidence about the outlook for the Australian, Asian, US and European economies over the coming year. “Directors are bracing for weaker economic conditions both at home and abroad over the next 12 months,” he said.