Record Dairy Payout Prospect Not Rubbing Off On Farmer Confidence.

NEW ZEALAND - That was one of the more suprising aspects of the latest Westpac McDermott Miller consumer confidence survey.

27 June 2007

1 minute read

Oceania

Three rises in the Official Cash Rate this year to date are starting to knock consumer confidence.

The latest rate increase by the Reserve Bank on 7 June brought the OCR to 8% - the highest in the OECD.

Now the Westpac McDermott Miller index has slipped six points in the three months to June to 111.4. A number over 100 indicates there are more optimists than pessimists.

Westpac economist Donna Purdue says one of the biggest drags on the index was rural confidence.

Source: Radio New Zealand