Dr Diaswati (Asti) Mardiasmo our National Research Manager has shared the great news that the Consumer Sentiment has Bounced Back! The index rose by 4.2% in February, to 101.3 index points from 97.3 in January – thanks to (mostly) lower oil (and thus petrol) prices.

What does this mean? The more confident people are in the economy, the more likely they are to increase spending – great news for all industries; especially the housing market as House Price Expectations lifted by 20.5% in January.

This afternoon the RBA has resolved to leave the official cash rate at 2 per cent, in line with the overwhelming majority of market predictions.