Energy price shock lands on households

CBA released its monthly Household Spending Insights (HSI), which rose by 0.3% in August and follows a 0.7% lift in July and a 0.5% increase in May and June.

The following chart from Justin Fabo from Antipodean Macro plots the uptrend in the HSI over recent months and confirms the stronger household consumption reported in the Q2 2025 ABS national accounts, released last week.

However, the rise in the HSI in August was driven by a surge in spending on utilities due primarily to price increases.

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About the author

Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.