Roy Morgan Research
December 22, 2020

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence drops 2.2pts to 109.0 as Sydney COVID-19 outbreak dents confidence leading up to Christmas

Topic: Consumer Confidence, Press Release
Finding No: 8585

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence dropped 2.2pts to 109.0 on December 19/20, 2020 and is now 13pts above the 2020 weekly average of 96.0, and 1pt higher than a year ago on the comparable weekend of December 14/15, 2019 (108.0).

ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence dropped 2.2pts to 109.0 on December 19/20, 2020 and is now 13pts above the 2020 weekly average of 96.0, and 1pt higher than a year ago on the comparable weekend of December 14/15, 2019 (108.0).

This week’s decrease in Consumer Confidence was driven by decreases in Sydney (down 5.9pts to 104.5) and NSW Country (down 2.1pts to 110.6) and falling confidence about the economic prospects for Australia over the next year.

Consumer Confidence also fell in other Capital Cities including Melbourne (down 3.9pts to 109.8), Brisbane (down 3pts to 110.1) and Adelaide (down 4.7pts to 108.3).

Current financial conditions

  • Now 24% (down 3ppts) of Australians say their families are ‘better off’ financially than this time last year and 28% (unchanged), say their families are ‘worse off’ financially.


Future financial conditions

  • In addition, 40% (down 1ppt) of Australians expect their family to be ‘better off’ financially this time next year compared to 12% (down 3ppts) that expect to be ‘worse off’ financially (the lowest figure for this indicator for nearly a year since January 11/12, 2020).


Current economic conditions

  • However, only 15% (down 4ppts) of Australians expect ‘good times’ for the Australian economy over the next 12 months while 21% (up 1ppt), expect ‘bad times’.


Future economic conditions

  • In the longer term, nearly a quarter of Australians, 24% (down 2ppts), are expecting ‘good times’ for the economy over the next five years compared to only 14% (up 2ppts) expecting ‘bad times’.


Time to buy a major household item

  • In good news for retailers in the lead-up to Christmas a clear plurality of Australians, 43% (unchanged), say now is a ‘good time to buy’ major household items (the equal highest figure for this indicator for over ten months since February 8/9, 2020), while only 26% (up 1ppt), say now is a ‘bad time to buy’.


ANZ Head of Australian Economics, David Plank, commented:

Block Quote

“The emergence of a major COVID-19 cluster in Sydney has dampened consumers’ otherwise positive sentiment. In Sydney, confidence was down 5.3% in its sharpest weekly drop since July. In the rest of New South Wales, it moderated by 1.9%. Confidence weakened in Victoria (down 2.9%), along with Queensland and Northern Territory. The lockdown of the suburbs around Sydney’s northern beaches and the state border closures have reminded people that material downside risks remain. The ongoing trend of higher inflation expectations has the 4-week moving average touching the level last seen in April. As we’ve noted, this lift is consistent with the likely bottom of inflation.”


Related Research Reports

The latest Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence Monthly Report is available on the Roy Morgan Online Store. It provides demographic breakdowns for Age, Sex, State, Region (Capital Cities/ Country), Generations, Lifecycle, Socio-Economic Scale, Work Status, Occupation, Home Ownership, Voting Intention, Roy Morgan Value Segments and more

Margin of Error

The margin of error to be allowed for in any estimate depends mainly on the number of interviews on which it is based. Margin of error gives indications of the likely range within which estimates would be 95% likely to fall, expressed as the number of percentage points above or below the actual estimate. Allowance for design effects (such as stratification and weighting) should be made as appropriate.

Sample Size Percentage Estimate
40% – 60% 25% or 75% 10% or 90% 5% or 95%
1,000 ±3.0 ±2.7 ±1.9 ±1.3
5,000 ±1.4 ±1.2 ±0.8 ±0.6
7,500 ±1.1 ±1.0 ±0.7 ±0.5
10,000 ±1.0 ±0.9 ±0.6 ±0.4
20,000 ±0.7 ±0.6 ±0.4 ±0.3
50,000 ±0.4 ±0.4 ±0.3 ±0.2

Related Findings

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