Australia Spending Holds Up as War Drives Oil Spike, CBA Says

Australian consumer spending has held up in the face of the Middle East conflict and the resulting surge in oil prices, the nation’s top lender Commonwealth Bank of Australia said.

Total spending on CBA cards held up in nominal terms in the week ending March 27, in part due to higher fuel expenditure, the bank said in a research note on Wednesday. Spending on transport as a proportion of total consumption increased sharply in recent weeks, it added.