Westpac Economics' weekly video update

This week saw the release of the September edition of the Westpac-MI consumer sentiment report. Global financial conditions weighed heavily on the outcome; within the detail, financial and economic expectations both fell. Also impacted by historically elevated concerns over the labour market, households' interest in purchasing major household items was materially affected. In contrast, the labour market data for August was more positive than expected, with a further 17k jobs created and a broadly stable unemployment rate at 6.2%. Next week, the focus will squarely be on the FOMC as they consider whether to raise rates for the first time in almost a decade. We anticipate they will follow through.