New Zealand Consumer Confidence Falls: ANZ
New Zealand September Consumer Confidence Falls, ANZ Says
Mark Coote/Bloomberg
People walk past store sale signs on Lambton Quay in downtown Wellington, New Zealand. Fewer of the 1,037 consumers surveyed expected to be better off in a year, today’s report showed. Fewer also predicted the economy to improve a year from now and more said it is a bad time to buy a major household item, it showed.
People walk past store sale signs on Lambton Quay in downtown Wellington, New Zealand. Fewer of the 1,037 consumers surveyed expected to be better off in a year, today’s report showed. Fewer also predicted the economy to improve a year from now and more said it is a bad time to buy a major household item, it showed. Photographer: Mark Coote/Bloomberg
New Zealand consumer confidence fell in September as turbulence in global equity markets outweighed a boost to sentiment from the start of the Rugby World Cup, according to ANZ National Bank Ltd.
The ANZ National-Roy Morgan confidence index declined to 112.6 from 113.3 in August, the Auckland-based bank said in an e-mailed report. The gauge has gained from a two-year low of 101.4 reached in March and April.
Sovereign debt worries in Europe have roiled markets, prompting central bank Governor Alan Bollard to keep the official cash rate unchanged yesterday. The rugby tournament that began in New Zealand on Sept. 9 has been a distraction for consumers, ANZ said.
“The feel-good factor from hosting the event may have helped offset any negative impact on sentiment from the deteriorating global outlook,” Khoon Goh, head of market economics and strategy at ANZ in Wellington, said in the report.
Fewer of the 1,037 consumers surveyed expected to be better off in a year, today’s report showed. Fewer also predicted the economy to improve a year from now and more said it is a bad time to buy a major household item, it showed.
Still, the report showed fewer respondents said they were worse off than a year ago, which may encourage a pick-up in retail sales, Goh said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Tracy Withers in Wellington at twithers@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stephanie Phang at sphang@bloomberg.net
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