The Reserve Bank’s cuts of 75 basis points in the past two months have prompted only a small rise in lending because consumer confidence is down, Commonwealth Bank and Adelaide Bank mortgage executives Kathy Cummings and Damian Percy said.
RBA assistant governor Guy Debelle said the muted reaction was not surprising as households were using the rate cuts to help pay down debt.
Mr Percy noted there had been “a bit of an uptick” in lending, but “whether it’s a function of survivor’s guilt I don’t know, but Australians have changed their attitude to debt.”
Source: Adelaide Advertiser