Consumption growth could ease due to tax reform — ANZ

Consumer spending could ease in response to higher commodity prices due to tax reform, analysts at ANZ Research said.

“Domestic demand is strong and is likely to remain so. However, the risk of some moderation in consumption growth remains. The growth in car sales had eased significantly in January. While take-home pay is higher for taxpayers, non-tax payers are facing higher prices. In the past, for every 1% increase in headline prices there was a corresponding decrease in private consumption by 0.3%,” the global bank said in a report. — Melissa Luz T. Lopez