Western Australians are cutting back on spending as costs rise – Bankwest

Year-on-year declines were also seen in the number of customers spending at electrical retailers (-9%) and sports/toy stores (-6%), highlighting the broader trend of reduced discretionary spending.

Only seven of the 25 sectors showed growth in the number of customers transacting year-on-year, but none was significant, with mail orders leading the way with an increase of just 3%.

Despite the overall decline in transaction volume, the average value of transactions grew by 4% year-on-year. Bankwest noted this indicates West Australians are paying more for less compared to last year. The leading sectors for higher average transaction value include essential services such as utilities (7%) and pharmacies (6%), highlighting the financial pressure on households.

“We can see from the May Spend Trends data that Western Australians are now very selective about where they spend their money,” says Peter Bouhlas (pictured above), general manager of products and digital services at Bankwest. “A 17% year-on-year decline for leisure is a significant decline, and we can see across the board that the vast majority of sectors are experiencing a decline in customers and transactions.

“One positive in the data is that most sectors see a stabilization – and in some cases a decline – year-on-year in the average value of transactions, suggesting that cost of living pressures may be decreases. This is perhaps no surprise when we look at the decline in the number of customers and volumes, with reduced demand and spending capacity obviously having an impact on prices.