New Zealand: Consumer confidence falls to record-low in December
The ANZ-Roy Morgan consumer confidence indicator plunged to 73.8 in December from 80.7 in November, marking the lowest reading on record. Therefore, the index moved further below the 100-threshold that separates optimism from pessimism among consumers.
In December, households expectations of their financial situation in one year view worsened, as did their expectations over the general economic situations in five years view and their willingness to buy big-ticket items.
Commenting on the release, Sharon Zollner, chief economist at ANZ, stated:
“Todays data makes for some pretty grim reading to end the year on, but given the recent experience its hard to gauge how much this will translate into weaker consumer activity. Downside risks to the outlook are clearly very heightened, but a decent slowdown is part of the RBNZs plan.”