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Consumers applaud Budget, but will they spend?

Colin BrinsdenAAP
Just over a quarter of respondents thought they would be better off financially after last week’s Federal Budget.
Camera IconJust over a quarter of respondents thought they would be better off financially after last week’s Federal Budget. Credit: valentinrussanov/Getty Images

Australians liked what they saw in last week’s Federal Budget, a positive sign for household spending as the economy attempts to recover from the recession.

The weekly ANZ-Roy Morgan consumer confidence index jumped 2.1 per cent, its sixth consecutive increase, and it now stands at its highest level since late May.

ANZ head of Australian economics David Plank said this was the second-best response to a Budget in the past six years.

“Consumers have given a thumbs up to the Budget,” Mr Plank said.

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There were also healthy increases in the survey sub-indices for “current” and “future” economic conditions and for “future finances”.

The overall index now sits at 97.7 points and slightly below 100, suggesting pessimists only just outweigh optimists.

Consumers went into the Budget with a growing positive mood on the prospect Treasurer Josh Frydenberg would deliver personal income tax cuts in his second Budget.

The Budget did bring forward tax cuts planned for 2022, and backdated to July, which were quickly passed by Federal Parliament last week.

A Newpoll published on Sunday in The Australian found just over two out of five respondents thought the Budget would be good for the economy compared with one in five who predicted it would be bad.

Just over a quarter thought they would be better off financially, while a slightly smaller number predicted they would be worse off, with just over half uncommitted.

The monthly Westpac-Melbourne Institute consumer sentiment survey will be released on Wednesday.

AAP

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