The latest ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence index has improved for the ninth week in a row, increasing by 6% last week on the back of further easing of the COVID-19 restrictions.

“Nine weekly gains in a row is unprecedented. To be fair, though, so was the depth of the starting point,” said David Plank, ANZ Head of Australian Economics. “More good news about the control of the pandemic and the consequent relaxation of restrictions is key to the lift in sentiment.”

The ‘time to buy a household item’ category gained substantially, rising by 10.9%, marking its fourth consecutive weekly gain.

In addition, the ‘future financial conditions’ category made a major recovery, closing in on the index’s long-run average.

‘Current economic conditions’ made the most significant increase over the past week, rising by 15.7%.

This strengthening in consumer sentiment is in line with increased footfall noted across retailers and shopping malls.