Australia Household Spending Rebounds as RBA Weighs Another Hike

Australia’s household spending rebounded in January, signaling resilient consumer demand even as the outlook is clouded by the risk of further interest-rate increases and higher energy costs stemming from the escalating Middle East conflict.

Consumption rose 0.3% from the prior month, just missing economists’ predictions for a 0.4% gain, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Thursday. The result followed an unexpected decline in December and left spending up 4.6% from a year earlier, also below estimates.