Consumer confidence slipped at the weekend, according to an ANZ survey of mixed results that was dragged down by a sharp drop in the number of people who thought it was a good time to buy a major household item.
The ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence index fell 0.9 per cent from the previous week, with respondents’ positive views of the economy over the next 12 months gaining 1.6 per cent – although pessimists continue to outnumber optimists, as they have since August – and sentiment about conditions during the next five years sliding 1.2 per cent.
The weekly measure of consumer mood, which is based on about 1,000 face-to-face interviews conducted at people’s homes on Saturdays and Sundays, also registered a 1.5 per cent drop in people who felt they were better off now compared with a year ago but there was a 3.7 per cent gain regarding the prospects for their own financial situation during the next 12 months.
In the poll’s last iteration of the year, the “time to buy a major household item” metric slumped 6.4 per cent – a move that ANZ described as “massive”.
“The weakness seen in the ‘time to buy a household item’ sub-index was almost enough to take it to its lowest level since the global financial crisis,” ANZ economist David Plank said.
AAP