Spending on travel, transport and entertainment rises, says CBA

After months of restrictions across Australia, people are spending more on travel and entertainment. There was 6.6% more spending in October compared to the month prior, said CBA. 

CommBank Household Spending intention (HSI) index, found that spending on travel surged 52% and transport went up 20% in October from September.

The report said: “The increase was driven by a more positive outlook on the future, with travel agents, airlines, cruise lines and motorhome and RV rentals seeing a boost in spending intentions.”

CBA’s group executive of institutional banking and markets, Andre Hinchliff said that after several months of lockdown people have a pent-up demand to go out and travel.

“Many people are searching for getaways or going for a quick break after so many months being cooped up at home, and with Christmas just around the corner, some are also already planning that December vacation,” he said.

“As people get back to being out and about, they’re driving more, they’re keeping that car clean, and they’re also back to using transportation services like taxis and rideshare services.”

A recent report from Citi also found that Aussies are keen to spend big during the holiday season.

In Citi’s report, 45% of participants are planning on spending more than $300 on gifts for others, and about $100-$200 on gifts for themselves. The report found the top three spending categories are groceries, liquor, and gifts.

“We have also seen an uptick in personal spending, with consumers wanting to treat themselves after this tumultuous period. Twenty-five per cent of Aussies are telling us they plan to spend more than they did last year,” Choong Yu Lum, head of cards and loans at Citi.

As an example, NSW spending was up 23 per cent in the last week of October on the corresponding week in 2019, with eating and drinking out and transportation leading the charge. Meanwhile, Victoria’s spending growth accelerated 1.2 percentage points above the week prior, equating to a 10 per cent increase on the same week in 2019.

So Aussies are out and about and spending.

If you are thinking about funding your next trip, check out Mozo’s travel credit card page. Or maybe you might want to take out a personal loan for your Christmas and travel spending.