Consumer sentiment dragged down by tariff turmoil: Westpac survey
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The news: Australian consumer sentiment plunged in early April in the wake of US President Donald Trump's tariffs announcement, according to the latest Westpac-Melbourne Institute index.
The numbers: The index fell 6% from 95.9 in March to 90.1 in April.
Notably, those surveyed before Trump's announcement reported an index read of 93.9, but those who responded afterwards reported a read of just 86.6 — nearly 10% lower than the March reading.
The context: Westpac head of Australian macro-forecasting Matthew Hassan noted that all of the survey's component indexes — which track family finances, expectations for the economy and whether now is a "good time to buy a major household item" — deteriorated this month.
"The scale and breadth of tariff increases, which included a 10% tariff on Australian goods, came as a major surprise, triggering a sell-off in global financial markets," Hassan said.
"With the situation still deteriorating, there is a clear risk of more significant sentiment declines in the months ahead."
After dropping 4.2% on Monday, the ASX 200 was up 1.55% to 7,457.40 at 1.27pm AEST today after major US indices closed relatively flat following a volatile session.
