Spending data: Omicron malaise lingers

This compares with declines of between 17-21 per cent in previous years.

“Generally, the national seasonal decline in dining spending is around 11-18 per cent but this year it was 26 per cent.”

Weakening consumer confidence through the first half of January is another sign spending could stay weak for a while longer.

Entertainment and travel spending has continued to drift down, while essentials like groceries have improved. Non-food retailing and dining has stayed somewhat stable but at low levels through January.

Compared with previous years, dining and takeaway has fallen far further in the first half of January compared with the first half of the previous December. Generally, the national seasonal decline in dining spending is around 11-18 per cent but this year it was 26 per cent. Dining is a key element of the decline in spending.

Dining spending has shifted online as well with over 10 per cent of dining and takeaway spend occurring online, compared with 4 per cent pre-COVID and 12-14 per cent during lockdown periods.

Non-food retailing has also shifted down and online but not as sharply. The seasonal decline in national shopping spending for the first half of January is on the low end of declines seen in previous years (33 per cent decline vs 30-33 per cent declines in recent years).

A quarter of ANZ-observed non-food retailing is now occurring online which is a little higher than recent shares of online spending outside of lockdown conditions (20 per cent) but lower than the peak last year during Delta lockdowns (40 per cent).

Adelaide Timbrell is Senior Economist at ANZ