The financial wellbeing of Australians, as analyzed by the ANZ & Roy Morgan Financial Wellbeing Indicator, has seen a decline in 2022. The indicator compares results from May 2022 with those from December 2021.
According to the report, "The financial wellbeing of Australians had partially recovered by the end of 2021 from the post COVID-19 lows experienced in March." However, there has been a second downturn since December 2021 due to an increase in Omicron cases and rising inflation and interest rates.
This decline was observed across all states and territories between December 2021 and May 2022. South Australia experienced the most significant decrease at 2.6%, while Victoria saw the smallest drop at 0.5%.
Financial wellbeing also fell among all age groups during this period: those aged 14-24 (down 0.8%), 25-34 (down 0.9%), 35-49 (down 1.4%), 50-64 (down 1.2%), and those over age 65 (down 1.2%).
Households earning less than $100,000 per year saw a decline of 1.8% in their financial wellbeing, while those with incomes between $100,000 and $199,999 experienced a decrease of 1%. There was no change for households earning $200,000 or more.
Certain demographics such as young families, renters, people not working full-time, and lower-income households with recent mortgages felt greater pressure on their financial wellbeing.
The ANZ Roy Morgan Financial Wellbeing Indicator is an ongoing measure that offers regular insights into financial wellbeing trends among Australians and New Zealanders through data collected by the Roy Morgan Single Source Survey.