Home topics news Image credit: CoWomen News News SMEs react to rate pause, sentiment surge Yajush Gupta April 17, 2023 The latest report from the Westpac-Melbourne Institute has shed light on the state of consumer sentiment in Australia. According to Westpac’s Consumer Sentiment report, there has been a significant increase of 9.4 per cent in consumer sentiment in April from the previous month. Specifically, the Index climbed from 78.4 in March to 85.8 in April, indicating a significant improvement in consumer sentiment. This upswing in sentiment has been attributed to the recent decision made by the RBA Board to pause. While this news is positive, it is important to note that consumer confidence remains weak, sitting at 10.4 per cent below levels seen in April of last year, before the tightening cycle. However, the report also highlights a notable increase of 12.2 per cent in confidence levels amongst mortgage borrowers, indicating a potential rebound in the housing market. Despite this, respondents remain cautious, with 34.11 per cent still expecting rates to increase by more than 1 per cent over the year, although this figure has decreased from the previous month’s 44.55 per cent. Furthermore, there has been a surge in confidence regarding the outlook for house prices, with the House Price Expectations Index rising by 16.7 per cent. In fact, the House Price Expectations Index experienced an incredible 43 per cent increase from its low point in November of last year. Small Biz sentiment check The data from Westpac has