Consumer confidence edged up marginally over the weekend as respondents felt optimistic about their finances despite gloom about the economy at large.
The ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence index gained 0.1 per cent from the previous week, with respondents’ perception of the country’s current economic conditions – including the outlook for the next 12 months – down 6.9 per cent but the “time to buy a household item” metric jumping 6.1 per cent.
There was a 5.0 per cent drop in respondents’ views about conditions for the Australian economy over the next five years.
The weekly measure of sentiment, which is based on about 1,000 face-to-face interviews conducted on Saturdays and Sundays, recorded a 4.7 per cent increase regarding people’s current financial conditions and a 0.2 per cent rise about their financial conditions over the next year.
“People were much more positive on their own financial circumstances but unsure about the economic outlook,” ANZ economist David Plank said.
“This may reflect the way lower interest rates are being perceived: positive at the individual level for many (though not all), but the fact that interest rates need to fall is possibly raising concerns about the economic fundamentals.”
Consumer anticipation of inflation also crept up slightly according to the survey released on Tuesday.
Source: AAP
