Aussies dining out when the sun's out
Australians are spending their extra cash on dining out in the sunny weather rather than saving it for a rainy day.
Australian retail spending rose 0.4 per cent in November, boosted by a one per cent rise in the cafes and restaurants category.
JP Morgan economist Tom Kennedy said the decent bounce in cafe and restaurant spending was in response to November's warmer weather.
"When the sun is shining and people can get outside the service sector will benefit," he said.
"Over the past year a lot of spending has gone into services and experiences, and that looks to have continued into year end."
CommSec chief economist Craig James said it indicates people are more confident about their finances than a year ago.
"Petrol prices are coming down, that puts extra dollars in people's pockets, and the lift in home prices over the last couple of years is also serving to boost wealth levels," he said.
Consumer spending is above longer term averages, with gains across all the states and all the major sectors in November.
"Annual growth is 4.3 per cent, the five-year average is 3.7 per cent," Mr James said.
He said that makes sense, given the non-mining sector of the economy is chugging along nicely.
"We've got business and consumer confidence above longer term averages, record sales of cars, record building approvals and a strong housing market," he said.
Total retail spending was $24.77 billion in November, up from $24.66 billion in October, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Friday.
Mr Kennedy said the result was perhaps a touch better than people were expecting, given the October print was upwardly revised to a 0.6 per cent rise.
The household goods category also increased by 0.9 per cent, a trend that has been in play for a while as a result of Australia's solid property sector, he said.
"People are buying (homes), people are renovating and you are seeing spill over to that kind of consumption," Mr Kennedy said.
Source: Yahoo 7 Finance / AAP, 8th January 2016
