Australian Consumers Keep Spending as Sentiment Sinks to Recession-Level Lows
Updated
Updated · Mumbrella · Aug 12
Australian Consumers Keep Spending as Sentiment Sinks to Recession-Level Lows
2 articles · Updated · Mumbrella · Aug 12
Summary
AMP said Australians are still spending across retail and discretionary categories even as consumer sentiment sits at levels usually associated with a recession.
Diana Mousina attributed the pessimism to cost-of-living pressure, inflation, rate hikes, tariff fears and Middle East conflict, but said retail and inflation data show spending has not "fallen off a cliff."
AMP no longer uses consumer sentiment to forecast retail spending because it no longer correlates; furnishings, household equipment, clothing, footwear and recreation spending remain firm, while credit card balances still look manageable.
Mousina said the resilience is supported by unemployment near a 50-year low, strong global profit growth, average wealth gains and home prices still more than 50% above Covid-era levels.
For marketers, the message is that recession-style gloom has not translated into a pullback in demand, and AMP still expects positive economic growth ahead.