No post-election boost for the consumer mood as many continue to be cautious on economic outlook

Our latest reading of the RED C Consumer Mood (the % that believe the economy is going to get better less the % that believe it will get worse in the coming six months) is at -23, a decline of 1pt over the past 3mths and an increase of 12pts versus 12mths ago.

Despite a trend of a very gradual improvement in the consumer mood over the past two years, this appears to have come to a halt (for now) and we still have a situation where on balance there is still a notable proportion of consumers that are downbeat about the economic outlook.

Budget 2025 and the formation of a new government appears to have done little to lift consumers’ spirits. While inflation has slowed considerably, the lingering impact of the cost of living crisis still appears to be an ongoing issue of concern for many consumers. That said, expectations for jobs and especially incomes are considerably better than what they were at the beginning of last year.

There are some silver linings here that point to grounds for optimism in 2025 – in particular, consumers see their financial wellbeing and standard of living improving, while there are indications that spend on holidays overseas will increase and more consumers plan to buy new cars in the year ahead.

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