Australian consumer confidence has plunged to its second-lowest point in history this week according to ANZ bank and Roy Morgan, slumping a further 4.9 points to 68.5.
ANZ and Roy Morgan data shows that the fall was driven by slips in personal finances and the Australian economy over the next year and next five years.
Consumer confidence is now a large 15.3 points lower than a year ago and is now 9.7 points below the 2026 weekly average of 78.2.
This is the second lowest ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence rating of all time, with the only other time the index was lower was in late March 2020, at the very start of the COVID-19 pandemic when widespread lockdowns were first introduced.
Fewer than one-in-six Australians (15 per cent – down 3ppts) now say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year compared to a majority of 52 per cent (up 5ppts) that say their families are ‘worse off’. This is the lowest net result for this indicator for over two years since December 2023.
Net views on personal finances over the next year were virtually unchanged this week with 21 per cent (up 1ppt) of respondents expecting their family will be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, while 43 per cent (unchanged) expect to be ‘worse off’. For the latter, it is the highest figure for over 35 years since August 1989.
Only 5 per cent (down 1ppt) of Australians now expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next twelve months compared to almost half (49 per cent – up 7ppts).
Over the next five years, just 8 per cent of Australians (down 1ppt) expect to see good times – a record low for this indicator – compared to 31 per cent (up 2ppts) expecting ‘bad times’. This is also the lowest net figure for this indicator for over 35 years since January 1991.
Meanwhile, net buying intentions were down this week with only 16 per cent (down 2ppts) of respondents saying now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items compared to 47 per cent (up 4ppts) that say now is a ‘bad time to buy major household items’.
ANZ economist Sophia Angala said households are increasingly pessimistic about the one-year and five-year outlooks for the economy, likely driven by geopolitical uncertainty and the shifting outlook for inflation and rates.
She added that inflation expectations are still at their highest since November 2022, supported by the recent sharp rise in petrol prices thanks to the US-Iran war.
“We expect the RBA board to increase the cash rate by 25bp to 4.1 per cent in its decision today,” Angala predicted. “With inflation above target and the labour market viewed as tight by the RBA, there is likely to be less tolerance than usual to an external inflation shock, in this case from higher oil prices.”
Consumer confidence also fell in most states including in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, and Western Australia, but up slightly in Victoria.