Australian consumer sentiment slips on weaker financial, economic outlook

Household finances remained under pressure.

Australian consumer confidence fell 1.2 points to 74.7 in the first week of July, according to the ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence Index.

The result is 13.9 points lower than the same period last year, when confidence was at 88.6, but remains 3.2 points above the 2026 weekly average of 71.5.

The decline was driven by weaker expectations about the Australian economy over the next year. Confidence fell in New South Wales and Western Australia, whilst Victoria, Queensland, and South Australia recorded slight improvements.

Only 15% of Australians said their families are financially better off than a year ago, compared with 51% who said they are worse off.

Expectations for the next year also weakened, with 22% expecting their household finances to improve and 40% expecting them to worsen.

Economic outlook sentiment declined, with 7% expecting good times for the economy over the next 12 months, whilst 40% expected bad times.

Five-year economic expectations were largely unchanged, with 9% expecting good times and 26% expecting bad times.

Buying sentiment for major household items was steady, with 19% saying it was a good time to buy and 42% saying it was a bad time.

ANZ Economist Sophia Angala said confidence weakened as financial and economic outlooks deteriorated. "The ‘time to buy a major household item’ subindex was the only subindex to improve last week, likely supported by end-of-financial-year sales during the survey period."

She noted that the decline followed the release of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s June meeting minutes, which highlighted the possibility of further rate increases.

Consumer confidence remains well below its long-term average, indicating continued pressure on household spending. ANZ expects household consumption growth to slow from 2.5% in 2025 to 1.1% in 2026.