Consumer confidence surprised to the upside - Westpac

Analysts at Westpac explained that the consumer confidence was a surprisingly strong result and confirms the lift we have seen in the Index over the last three months. 

Key Quotes:

"The Westpac Melbourne Institute Index of Consumer Sentiment rose 3.6% to 103.3 in December from 99.7 in November."

"The average reading for the Index in the December quarter is 5% above the average for the September quarter when we saw a disturbing slump in consumer spending. 

This result is supportive of the view that consumer confidence may have bottomed out during that September quarter."