By James Glynn
SYDNEY--Australian consumer confidence nudged higher last week despite the Reserve Bank of Australia ramping up hawkish messaging at its June policy meeting.
Consumer confidence rose 0.1 point over the week to 80.4 points, according to a survey by the ANZ Bank and pollster Roy Morgan.
RBA Governor Michele Bullock said last week that a lot needs to go the way of the RBA from here if it is to contain inflation within the 2% to 3% target band, and repeated all policy options are on the table for the central bank.
Crucial monthly inflation data on Wednesday could further swing the pendulum toward a further interest-rate increase as early as August if it disappoints money market traders.
Despite the comments, the time to buy a major household item subindex increased 5.2 points over the week with ANZ economist Madeline Dunk pointing to midyear sales by department stores as a potential trigger for the increase.
"This may be linked to the ramp up of end-of-financial year sales events as retailers try to entice households to spend," she said.
Weekly inflation expectations fell 0.1 percentage point to 4.8%, keeping the four-week moving average unchanged at 4.9%, the data showed.
The weekly ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian consumer confidence rating is based on 1,502 interviews conducted online and over the telephone during the week to Sunday.
Write to James Glynn at james.glynn@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
06-24-24 1945ET
