That's according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics' (ABS) latest household impacts of COVID-19 survey.
This is the sixth such survey, and collated responses throughout the nation between the 10th and 15th of June.
The JobKeeper amount of $1,500 a fortnight, however, is still less than 48% of respondents' usual pay, while one third said the JobKeeper amount was about the same.
This generally corroborates the ABS-reported average weekly wage of about $1,650 before tax, overtime and bonuses, however wages have fallen since COVID-19 hit the economy.
Even with restrictions starting to ease, many households are still keeping the purse strings tight, according to ABS' head of household surveys Michelle Marcquardt.
“This survey showed us a mixed picture of what Australians plan to spend their money on once restrictions ease," she said.
“Many Australians reported decreased spending on eating out (87%), child care fees (85%), recreation or leisure (79%), public transport (73%) and personal care (64%).
“Of these people, a majority expected to increase their spending on recreational activities (74%), eating out (74%), private transport (73%), personal care (70%), childcare (66%) and public transport (55%).
“On the other hand, the majority of Australians who had reduced expenditure on household furnishings (72%) and clothing and footwear (52%) expected to continue to spend lower amounts on these items as COVID-19 restrictions ease.”
The next household impacts survey will be released 13 July, and will cover emotional and mental wellbeing, use of telehealth services, household finances, moving intentions, and uptake of the COVID-Safe app.
Need somewhere to store cash and earn interest? The table below features introductory savings accounts with some of the highest interest rates on the market.
Provider | |||||||||||||
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| 0 | 1000 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
| FEATURED | Savings Maximiser (<$100k)
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Savings Maximiser (<$100k)
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| 0 | 200 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
| No monthly fees | Save Account
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Save Account
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| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | ||||||
Savings Account (Amounts < $250k)
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Savings Account (Amounts < $250k)
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| 0 | 2000 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
HomeME Savings Account ($0 - $100,000) | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 200 | 1 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Growth Saver ($1 - $25k) | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 1000 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Target Saver | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 1000 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
| For customers aged 14-35 years | |||||||||||||
Future Saver Account ( < $50k) | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 500 | 1 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Goal Saver
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Goal Saver
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| 0 | 1000 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Boost Saver | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 0.01 | 1 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Reward Saver Account (31 years +) ($0-$100k) | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 100 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Bonus Saver Account (Amounts < $100k) | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 20 | 1 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Reward Saver Kick Start (Amounts ≤ $1m) | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 0.01 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Life (< 30 years) (Monthly deposit) | |||||||||||||
| 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | ||||||
NetBank Saver | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 0 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
ANZ Save | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 5 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Young Saver Account | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 50 | 1 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Save up | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 200 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Bonus Saver (<$1 Million) | |||||||||||||
| 0 | 10 | 0 | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | $product[$field["value"]] | More details | |||||||
Smart Saver Account (Under 25) | |||||||||||||
- Deposit at least $1,000 + each month from an external source
- Make 5 or more eligible transactions
- Grow your savings balance each month
International travel still off the cards for most
While more than half (55%) of the ABS survey respondents reported they intend on going on a domestic holiday once travel restrictions have been eased, just 29% reported they intend to go on an international holiday.
Of those who do intend to travel internationally, just 44% intend to go within the next six to 12 months.
This is in contrast to those that intend to travel domestically, as 68% intend to go within the next six months.
Brooke Cooper
William Jolly
Emma Duffy
