Household wealth increased by 1.5% (or $250 billion) in the June 2024 quarter, marking the seventh consecutive quarter of growth, according to the latest data from ABS.
Total household wealth reached $16.5 trillion, a 9.3% increase compared to a year ago, primarily driven by rising values of residential properties.
The key driver of this growth was residential land and dwellings, contributing 1.3 percentage points to the quarterly increase.
“House prices have continued to rise across most states and territories, despite high interest rates,” Mish Tan (pictured above), ABS head of finance statistics, said in a media release. “This largely reflects ongoing housing supply constraints and an uptick in investor activity over the quarter.”
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Superannuation assets also added to the growth in household wealth, rising by 0.3% ($13.7bn) during the quarter. This moderate increase helped bolster overall wealth amid broader economic challenges.
The maturation of the final Term Funding Facility (TFF) allowance, which ended on June 30, has shifted the funding landscape for banks.
Banks’ exchange settlement accounts with the Reserve Bank dropped significantly as $105bn worth of securitised bonds returned to bank balance sheets.
To maintain liquidity, banks purchased $23.1bn in national government bonds and $16bn in semi-government bonds.
“The TFF gave banks access to low-cost funding during the pandemic,” Tan said. “With the final maturation of the TFF in June, banks have continued a return to more traditional sources of funding.”
Total demand for credit reached $97.9bn, with households accounting for $57.5bn and private businesses contributing $36.9bn.
The demand was partially offset by a $2.2bn decline in credit sought by the general government, reflecting shifts in borrowing patterns across sectors, ABS reported.
For more details, see Australian National Accounts: Finance and Wealth, June 2024.
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