Australian consumer sentiment fell to the weakest level since the Great Financial Crisis in August, contributing to the decline in the AUD/USD currency pair. The Aussie fell against the US Dollar to be traded below the 0.7883 mark on Wednesday’s morning. The Westpac-Melbourne Institute revealed that its Consumer Confidence Index dropped 1.2% in August, following a 0.4% increase registered in the prior month. Moreover, consumer sentiment weakened for the third time in the last four months amid higher pressures on households’ finances and concerns about interest rate hike. However, Westpac forecasts that the Reserve Bank of Australia would keep rates on hold in 2018, due to expectations for insufficient economic growth and low inflation.
