Leadership change gives needed boost to consumer confidence

On the back of the recent change in Prime Minister, where Malcolm Turnbull defeated Tony Abbott in the leadership ballet, consumer confidence has surged 8.7% to 114.5 according to the ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence results.

This spike in confidence has more than offset the 7.1% decline over the previous two weeks and leaves confidence above long term average levels.

ANZ Chief Economist Warren Hogan said these gains are most likely an outcome of the public’s optimism around the leadership change.

“The sharp jump in ANZ- Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence last week is a clear vote of confidence in the new Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull. A similar surge in business was evident when the Coalition won government in late 2013,” he said.

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Australian consumer’s views on economic conditions over the next year jumped 25.8%, the second largest one week gain since 2008 while confidence in the economy grew 13.4% but still remained below its long run average.

“The challenge for the Prime Minister is to effectively communicate that changes to the way of the economy operates are in the community’s medium term interest and necessary to raise incomes, create high value jobs and sustain investment,” Hogan said.

It was also found that consumers’ views on their financial position compared to a year ago rose modestly.

As confidence is slowly restored and the summer holiday season approaches, we encourage Australians to shop around for better deals on their credit cards. You can start your search by checking out which credit cards won a Mozo Experts Choice Award for best value here.