Confidence booster
Consumer confidence bounced by +9.4 per cent in April, as interest rates were paused.
The time to buy a dwelling index also jumped by +8.2 per cent, with house price expectations rising again by some +16.6 per cent.
House price expectations readings have rocketed +43 per cent higher since November, and are now broadly back to where they were when the interest rate tightening cycle began a year ago.
Source: Westpac
In Sydney this has already played out a couple of months ago, with asking prices for dwellings now higher than they were this time last year (and significantly so for units).
This makes obvious sense, as these two cities aren't building nearly enough housing, and immigration is running at all-time highs.
It's worth considering, though, that these measures are heavily weighted towards Sydney and Melbourne, and may not be reflective of what is playing out across parts of regional Australia.
In other news, NAB's Business Survey for March showed prices and cost pressures easing across the board:
Source: NAB
Policy settings are working as they should - good to see.
