Consumers get more cautious

Consumer confidence eased this month as consumers remained cautious about spending money.

The ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence measure eased to 105.8 points this month from 113.9 points last month. The Current Conditions index fell 3.1 points to 105, while the Future Conditions index eased by 11.4 points to 106.3.

"Right here and now consumers still feel worse off, and more so," said Cameron Bagrie, chief economist at ANZ New Zealand.

"The consumer is not the flag-bearer of growth."

Consumer perceptions towards the general economy a year out fell to -19 points from 2 points last month, while sentiment towards the economy five years from now eased to 18 points from 23.

Inflation expectations lifted marginally to 3.7 per cent from 3.6 per cent. That comes as Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard left the official cash rate unchanged at 2.5 per cent and flagged a slower track for interest rate increases.

House price expectations remained unchanged on 3.5 per cent, with consumers still perceiving it to be a good time to buy a big ticket item, even as sentiment slipped 5 points to 20.

Regionally, Canterbury recorded the largest fall, down 14 points to 106.1 points, followed by Wellington down 13 points to a 13-month low of 105.7. Auckland recorded the smallest decline on 109.8 points from 111.8 points a month earlier.

Female consumers were more pessimistic than males, with confidence dropping 4 points to 6 points.