Food and fun are our post-lockdown spending priorities

Australians have been spending more of their money on food, recreation and culture, according to new figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

According to the Monthly Household Spending Indicator report, in January 2022 Australian household spending increased by 4.3 per cent nationwide compared to the same time the year before.

ABS head of macroeconomic statistics, Jacqui Vitas, said that “eased COVID-19 restrictions in January 2022 across most states saw consumers shift spending from their homes to hospitality and retail venues.”

This was reflected in the +11.3% rise in spending on recreation and culture and +9.7% rise in spending on food compared to January 2021. Spending increased in all categories, save for alcoholic beverages and tobacco (-10.6 per cent) and furnishings and household equipment (-4.0 per cent).

That said, household spending is still well below pre-pandemic levels, with January 2022’s spending coming in 0.6 per cent below January 2020 spending, with transport down 25.7 per cent and hotels, cafes and restaurants down 11.7 per cent compared to pre-lockdowns.

As these figures reflect the start of 2022, they don’t account for more recent events that could affect Australian spending patterns, such as higher petrol prices, rising costs of living, and the impact of natural disasters.

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