Australian consumer confidence rebounds in Feburary: survey

Consumer sentiment in Australia has rebounded in February after it fell in January in response to the Queensland floods, according to a survey by Westpac Banking Corp and Melbourne Institute released on Wednesday.

The Westpac-Melbourne Institute Index of Consumer Sentiment rose 1.9 percent in February.

The lift in consumer sentiment followed a 5.7 percent fall in the index in January.

Westpac senior economist Bill Evans said much of the January fall was in response to the floods.

"The survey in January was conducted over the week when the floods in Brisbane and regional Queensland dominated the news," Evans said.

"The fall in January was not just a negative response in Queensland, since excluding Queensland the Index was still down by 3.2 percent."

Evans said the rebound in February could have been stronger if Cyclone Yasi in north Queensland had not occurred.

Four of the five components of the consumer sentiment index increased in February.

The index measuring assessments of family finances fell 4.4 percent from January.

The index, measuring expectations for finances over the next 12 months, rose 1.4 percent.

The outlook for economic conditions over the next 12 months rose by 1.1 percent, whereas the five-year outlook was up by 10.2 percent.

The index of whether it is a good time to buy a major household item was up by 0.8 percent.

Source:Xinhua