Economics
Australia Consumer Sentiment Drops as Weak GDP Spooks Households
- Property slump also helps push confidence to lowest since 2017
- RBA concerned at property downturn hitting household spending
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Australia’s consumer confidence slumped in March as households were shaken by a slowdown in economic growth and the prolonged downturn in the property market.
Sentiment fell 4.8 percent to 98.8, the weakest reading since September 2017 and meaning pessimists now outnumber optimists, Westpac Banking Corp. said in a statement Wednesday. It said responses during the survey showed “a marked drop off” after gross domestic product data on March 6.