Rising Household Spending Trends in Australia: October Insights

Data via Commonwealth Bank of Australia, one of Australia’s largest four banks. The CommBank Household Spending Insights (HSI) index rose by 0.8% in October, partially offsetting a -0.9% decline in September.

• Spending Categories: Ten out of twelve categories showed growth, with notable increases in:
  • Household goods: +2.5%, driven by online marketplaces, hardware, and discount stores.
  • Recreation: +1.6%, led by ticketing agencies for major events.
  • Other categories: Communications & digital, Hospitality, Health, and Household services, all up by 0.9%–1.1%.
• Declines: Education (-1.3%) and Utilities (-3.4%) spending fell, the latter due to local government charges and electricity costs.

Annual spending growth rose to 4.9% in October, with Health (+10.6%), Recreation (+10.5%), and Communications & digital (+8.4%) leading the way.

• Weak Sectors: Utilities and Transport spending saw annual declines, due to rebates and lower petrol prices.

The report noted that Household spending was volatile in the third quarter, averaging just 0.3% monthly growth.

• Higher disposable incomes and lower utility/petrol prices likely influenced recent spending; however, a significant rise in spending is not expected until the RBA reduces interest rates, projected for February 2025.

From the report:

This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at www.forexlive.com.