‘Catalytic impact’: end of hardship measures could trigger collapse
Hardship assistance given to mortgage holders who have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic has bolstered consumer spending, but the withdrawal of private-sector support to households threatens to hit the economy later this year.
A real-time spending tracker shows discretionary purchases by borrowers who have deferred mortgage repayments during the pandemic have been little different from those who have not deferred payments.
Earlier this month, the Australian Banking Association said 429,900 mortgages had been deferred, totalling $153.5 billion. Hundreds of thousands of households are also receiving relief from rental payments and bills from utilities such as phone and electricity.
Without these provisions, many households financially affected by the pandemic would have been forced to dramatically cut spending in response.