{"id":609576,"date":"2026-04-16T00:32:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T00:32:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/609576\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T00:32:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T00:32:10","slug":"household-spending-up-in-march-as-fuel-costs-surge-over-65s-lead-spending-growth-cba-data-shows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/609576\/","title":{"rendered":"Household spending up in March as fuel costs surge, over-65s lead spending growth, CBA data shows"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australians spent more last month as the outbreak of the Iran war drove up petrol prices and older Australians increased their spending at the fastest pace.<\/p>\n

Data from about seven million Commonwealth Bank customers showed a 2.9 per cent lift in household spending in March as transport spending leapt 22.9 per cent.<\/p>\n

CBA’s Household Spending Insights (HSI) is based on the de-identified payments and home lending data of their customers, which the bank said equates to roughly 30 per cent of Australian consumer transactions.<\/p>\n

“The sharp March lift in household spending reflects higher petrol prices as a result of the conflict in the Middle East,” CBA head of Australian economics Belinda Allen said.<\/p>\n

Track the latest petrol and diesel prices around Australia<\/a><\/p>\n

See what’s happening with petrol and diesel prices near you, updated constantly.<\/p>\n

The transport category accounted for more than half of the overall rise in spending.<\/p>\n

“Spending at petrol stations accounts for well over half of the category, with spending up around 45 per cent in the month,” Ms Allen said.<\/p>\n

Fuel was not the only driver of households opening their wallets, however. Spending rose across all categories CBA tracks, both last month and over the year.<\/p>\n

Households splashed out more on hospitality (up 1.2pc) and recreation (up 0.9pc) compared to a month earlier, which the bank attributed to being “supported by a busy events calendar including the start of the NRL and AFL seasons, the Formula 1 Grand Prix and the Women’s Asia Cup”.<\/p>\n

More cash went towards utilities (up 6.9pc) as electricity rebates rolled off, while insurance spending (up 2.5pc) rose, which CBA put down to health insurance prepayments ahead of premium rises from April 1.<\/p>\n

“Looking ahead, CommBank expects household spending to slow as real household disposable income growth weakens, helping ease inflation pressures over time,” Ms Allen said.<\/p>\n

“The outlook for consumers will be critical to the path of interest rates beyond May.”<\/p>\n

Transaction data from another major bank, Westpac, showed Australians were already shifting their spending habits on fuel, the institution’s chief economist Luci Ellis told ABC News.<\/p>\n

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On Wednesday, the IMF outlined several sobering scenarios facing the global economy and warned governments against subsidies to soften the blow of surging fuel prices<\/a>, saying high prices were important for signalling scarcity and recalibrating demand and supply.<\/p>\n

“In the end, if you’ve had a reduction in supply, you need to meet that with lower demand, and economics will tell you that the way that you induce lower demand is by having that higher price and inducing people to economise on it,” Dr Ellis said.<\/p>\n

“We see this in our own banking data here at Westpac where we see more people that are using public transport.”<\/p>\n

Dr Ellis said the bank’s data showed that people were initially topping up their petrol tanks more frequently in response to the Middle East crisis, but that behaviour has now reduced.<\/p>\n

“People are making decisions day-to-day that reduce their own demand for fuel, and that’s what higher prices do,” she said.\"A<\/p>\n

Spending at petrol stations rose by about 45 per cent in March, a CBA economist said. (Adobe Stock)<\/p>\n

Older Australians lead spending growth: CBA<\/p>\n

CBA’s HSI showed spending growth was uneven among the age groups in March, with older Australians outpacing their younger counterparts.<\/p>\n

Over 65-year-olds increased their spending by 14.2 per cent over the year, followed by the 55-64 age bracket (up 9.4pc) and 45 to 54-year-olds (up 7.5pc).<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Older Australians increased their spending more than their younger counterparts. (Supplied: CBA)<\/p>\n

The breakdown by age was new to this HSI report. CBA said it had chose to add it because “shifts in interest rates, inflation and wealth can see growth rates of consumption differ by age group”.<\/p>\n

“Typically, households aged 65 and over have higher disposable incomes and are more likely to benefit from higher interest rates compared with other age groups,” Ms Allen noted.<\/p>\n

Compared to March 2025, all age cohorts apart from 18-24 year olds lifted their rate of spending growth.<\/p>\n

Apart from the different trends based on age, CBA has also flagged a split based on location.<\/p>\n

Regional areas recorded stronger annual spending growth than metro areas in most states, with particularly strong regional spending in Queensland and Western Australia.<\/p>\n

But the bank’s economists noted that while higher fuel prices would initially lift spending in the regions, it could be short-lived.<\/p>\n

“Regional areas are more exposed to prolonged increases given the heavy reliance of agricultural, mining and freight industries on diesel-intensive operations,” the report read.<\/p>\n

If elevated fuel prices persist, Ms Allen said regional spending was likely to soften.<\/p>\n

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