Australia: Consumer sentiment falls back on second Covid-19 wave in July
The Westpac-Melbourne Institute consumer sentiment index fell to 87.9 in July from 93.7 in June. The decrease came on the back of the new lockdown measures adopted in Melbourne following a new outbreak of coronavirus. Therefore, sentiment moved further below the 100-mark, indicating that there were more pessimists than optimists among Australian consumers.
July’s deterioration was broad-based, although the largest drops were recorded for the near- and longer-term outlook for the economy. Meanwhile, households’ willingness to make major purchases declined somewhat, although it remained in positive terrain. Furthermore, consumers’ confidence regarding their future financial weakened in July, while employment expectations worsened considerably. In addition, consumers’ assessments of “time to buy” a dwelling strengthened although house prices expectations increased again.
FocusEconomics panelists are still assessing the latest developments.