Australian NAB Business Confidence rose to 6 in September, up from 5 and beat expectation of 5. Business Conditions rose to 15, up from 14 and beat expectation of 9.
Alan Oster, NAB Group Chief Economist noted in the release that “business conditions appear to have stabilized after declining through the middle of 2018.” Also, “despite having eased notably from the highs earlier in the year, they remain well above average, suggesting that the business environment continues to be favorable”. And, “ongoing strength in employment is especially encouraging.”
The only concern remains around “lower forward orders”. Mining again is strongest but “retail is weak and deteriorating”. And, “retail has now lagged for some time and is unlikely to turn around anytime soon with the weaker outlook for the consumer and ongoing structural changes in the sector”. Overall, the survey points to “ongoing strength in business activity” in to latter part of 2018, but “ongoing meek price pressures”.
