Australian household spending has slowed through 2026, with Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) data pointing to a broad-based easing in consumption as travel normalises and higher fuel prices pressure household budgets.
CBA’s latest Economic Insights report found credit and debit card spending slowed further through August and early September, extending a choppy pattern seen across much of the year. The bank expects its more comprehensive CommBank Household Spending Insights series, due on September 22, to provide further detail on August trends.
Despite the slowdown, CBA noted that several temporary factors weighing on spending in the June quarter had begun to unwind, while retail spending remained comparatively resilient.
Travel spending returns to normal
Travel was one of the clearest sources of weakness.
CBA data showed spending on commercial airfares and cruise lines had fallen back towards more typical levels after a strong June quarter, when overseas travel spending was a major drag on household consumption in the national accounts.
Short-term outbound travel also appeared to be normalising, with annual growth in Australians travelling overseas remaining lower than last year.
Accommodation spending remained below 2025 levels for most of 2026, although online travel booking expenditure had risen above last year’s levels.
Retail remains relatively resilient
Retail spending has held up better than some other categories.
CBA found retail expenditure as a share of overall spending was broadly tracking 2025 levels, including across discretionary areas such as clothing, accessories and electronics.
Department store spending, which includes purchases through online marketplaces, was running above last year’s levels, while homewares and appliance spending showed some weakness.
Combined with continued solid vehicle sales, CBA interpreted the data as suggesting there had so far been only a limited impact on household goods spending from housing market turnover or wealth effects.
Fuel costs add pressure
Higher petrol prices have emerged as another headwind.
Petrol station spending as a share of household expenditure moved above 2025 levels from early August following the expiry of fuel excise relief and escalation in the Iran war.
CBA noted fuel prices had risen again since the latest data was collected, suggesting petrol expenditure was likely to remain elevated and put further pressure on discretionary spending.
Vehicle demand, however, remained robust. Passenger vehicle sales rose 8.3% year-on-year in August, while electric vehicles accounted for around a quarter of new vehicle sales, up 171% from August 2025.
Spending on EV charging was also materially higher than a year earlier, with the ACT recording the highest share among states and territories.
Overall, CBA’s data points to a consumer sector that is slowing rather than collapsing, with spending weakness spread across categories but retail activity showing few signs of a sharp deterioration.
