Where Qlders are spending up big, despite cost of living pain

Queenslanders are splashing their hard-earned on discretionary items despite the cost of living and interest rates rising. VOTE IN OUR POLL

Cost-of-living pains are rising, but it has not stopped Queenslanders from splashing their hard-earned cash on restaurants, cafes, recreation, booze and holidays.

Australia’s economy grew 3.6 per cent in the past 12 months, despite growing challenges including inflation reaching 6.1 per cent and growing.

The economic news follows interest rates rising another 0.5 per cent to 2.35 per cent on Tuesday, which saw Treasurer Jim Chalmers have to knock back calls for Reserve Bank Governor Philip Lowe to resign as he stressed the importance of the central bank’s independents.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers

Dr Lowe is also expected to give an address on Thursday at the Anika Foundation addressing the rising inflationary pressures.

It comes as Treasurer Jim Chalmers promised “to responsibly ease people’s cost-of-living pressures” despite the challenges in the budget.

Spendthrift Queenslanders are the biggest drivers in preventing the state’s economy from slipping backwards, with new data showing it rose just 1 per cent in the three months to June.

How much the state is spending at cafes, hotels and restaurants jumped up more than 10 per cent, while spending on recreational and cultural activities went up almost as much, Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed in the national accounts released on Wednesday.

There was also a big jump of more than 30 per cent on how much was splashed out on planes, trains and other transport means as tourism started to take off again as the state recovered from the Omicron wave.

Mr Chalmers said the Federal Government was weighing up competing priorities with the budget, in terms of burgeoning debt and easing hip-pocket pain for Australians.

“The Prime Minister has been upfront with people about the challenges we face in the Budget,” he said.

“We will do the right and responsible thing and that means doing what we can to responsibly ease people’s cost-of-living pressures.”

Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe

Shadow treasurer Angus Taylor said the Coalition had left the economy in a strong position, but it was up to the new government to take action on rising interest rates.

“If the government doesn’t have a clear economic plan, the Reserve Bank will have no choice but to raise interest rates even higher,” Mr Taylor said.

“Today’s data shows household spending is up but their capacity to save is going down which will make it even harder for homeowners to stump up more cash to keep pace with rising interest rates.”

In regards to Dr Lowe, Mr Chalmers said he would not be “bagging the governor”.

“It’s not for me to second-guess the decisions taken by the independent central bank,” he said.