National Australia Bank Business Survey for August 2023
Australian business
conditions showed a broad
uptick in sales, profits and jobs
- employment sub index +3 to +9
- sales index +1 to +18
- profitability
+2 to +13 - forward orders, an indicator for the demand outlook +1 to zero
NAB comments:
- “There was a notable rise in the employment index which is
well above the long-run average, suggesting labour demand has
remained strong into the second half of the year,” - “Price growth also remains elevated which reflects the
considerable cost pressures businesses are facing, as well as
the ongoing resilience of demand… We expect inflation to
remain elevated in Q3.”
Labour costs +3.2% in the past
three months
- prior reading was +3.7%
Purchasing costs + 2.9%