Household spending plunged more in 2020 than in global financial crisis
Reserve Bank bulletin paints a bleak picture of the effect of the Covid-19 lockdown
30 March 2021 - 12:58
UPDATED 30 March 2021 - 18:54
The Reserve Bank’s quarterly bulletin makes for grim reading, painting a bleak picture of the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown on the economy, which led to a collapse in household spending more than double that seen during the financial crisis a decade ago.
Real final consumption expenditure by households contracted 5.4% in 2020, the March bulletin released on Tuesday shows. This was more than the contraction in 2009 and compared with a 1% increase in 2019. The drop compares with average increases of 3.2% per annum over the previous 20 years...
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