Sign up to create alerts for Instruments,
Economic Events and content by followed authors
Free Sign Up Already have an account? Sign In
Soni Soni
Mar 10, 2023 10:53AM ET
Kanada
0
0
Quotes
All Instrument Types
- All Instrument Types
- Indices
- Equities
- ETFs
- Funds
- Commodities
- Currencies
- Crypto
- Bonds
- Certificates
Please try another search
🙌 It's Here: the Only Stock Screener You'll Ever Need Get Started
Australia consumer sentiment rises in Jan, still 'depressingly low' - Westpac
Published Jan 16, 2023 06:45PM ET
© Reuters.
By Ambar Warrick
Investing.com -- Australian consumer sentiment improved more in January, a private survey showed on Tuesday, as consumers welcomed a brief respite from the Reserve Bank’s interest rate hikes, although the overall picture of the economy still remained negative.
The Westpac Melbourne Institute Consumer Sentiment Index rose 5% in January to 84.3 from 80.3 in the prior month. The reading was the index’s biggest increase since April 2021.
But Westpac analysts warned in a statement that the boost in sentiment was likely to be temporary, given that the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) did not hike rates during the month only as there was no meeting scheduled. Broader economic conditions in Australia still remain weak, and consumer sentiment, while having improved, is still trending close to historic lows.
“We should be cautious about reading the January sentiment rise as part of a continuing trend. Westpac expects the Reserve Bank Board to continue with its interest rate policy tightening at its next meeting on February 7… Sentiment is still depressingly low,” Bill Evans, Chief Economist at Westpac wrote in a note.
Still, Evans noted that sentiment had likely bottomed out in November, and is likely to improve in the coming months as inflation eases, albeit slightly.
The RBA is expected to hike rates by another 25 basis points when it meets in February, given that Australian inflation is trending at over 30-year highs. Rising inflation and interest rates battered consumer sentiment in 2022, as household spending bore the brunt of tighter monetary conditions.
Westpac expects interest rates to rise by another cumulative 75 bps before the RBA eases on the hikes. Inflation is also expected to ease through 2023.
Confidence among mortgage holders improved in January amid some relief over no interest rate hikes, while optimism over the labor market also increased. Australia’s labor market remained tight in 2022, and was a major contributor to steady household spending, even as wage growth lagged.
Related Articles
Comments (2)
JIM VETTER
Jan 16, 2023 7:53PM ET
They can't even subtract. pathetic
0
0
Add Chart to Comment
Confirm Block
Are you sure you want to block %USER_NAME%?
By doing so, you and %USER_NAME% will not be able to see any of each other's Investing.com's posts.
%USER_NAME% was successfully added to your Block List
Since you’ve just unblocked this person, you must wait 48 hours before renewing the block.
Report this comment
I feel that this comment is:
Comment flagged
Thank You!
Your report has been sent to our moderators for review
Add a Comment
We encourage you to use comments to engage with other users, share your perspective and ask questions of authors and each other. However, in order to maintain the high level of discourse we’ve all come to value and expect, please keep the following criteria in mind:
Enrich the conversation, don’t trash it.
Stay focused and on track. Only post material that’s relevant to the topic being discussed.
Be respectful. Even negative opinions can be framed positively and diplomatically. Avoid profanity, slander or personal attacks directed at an author or another user. Racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination will not be tolerated.
Perpetrators of spam or abuse will be deleted from the site and prohibited from future registration at Investing.com’s discretion.