ANZ Economist Describes New Zealand Economy as 'Mixed Bag'

New Zealand's economy is described as a 'mixed bag' by ANZ senior economist Miles Workman. Consumer confidence is 'trudging along,' according to the latest ANZ-Roy Morgan NZ Consumer Confidence Survey, while two-year-ahead inflation expectations dropped to their lowest level since March 2025.

The survey measures the results of five questions asked monthly of a random phone sample of over 1,000 people. In September, consumer confidence was down just 0.4 points to 97.6 from 98.0 in August. However, this is still 17 points above the survey's April low when consumer confidence reached its lowest reading in about three years.

Two-year-ahead inflation expectations edged down 0.2 percentage points to 4.5%, the lowest level since March 2025. The proportion of households thinking it's a good time to buy a major household item lifted 5 points to -7, remaining 'subdued.'

Workman said oil prices had 'lifted sharply' during September, peaking around the middle of the month before 'partially retracing.' He also noted that the consumer outlook survey gave a 'slightly different signal' to the bank's September business outlook survey, which was released earlier this week.