The CommBank Household Spending Insights (HSI) Index rose by 1.3 per cent to 156.9 in November, driven by a 5.7 per cent surge in spending on Household Goods.

The rise was largely attributed to Black Friday-Cyber Monday sales, with fashion leading the gains in Household Goods with a 30 per cent month-on-month increase in spending at men’s and women’s clothing stores.

Eight of the 12 HSI spending categories saw an increase in November, with notable uplifts in Hospitality (+2.2 per cent) and Food & Beverage goods (+1.7 per cent).

“Bargain hunters taking advantage of Black Friday sales drove an increase in spending in November, broadly in line with 2023, and we expect to see a drop off in spending in December as we have seen in previous years,” said CBA Chief Economist Stephen Halmarick.

"We’re seeing Black Friday and holiday spending shift earlier as retailers entice shoppers with early discounts on discretionary items. Collectively, sales for October and November 2024 were up 2 per cent compared to the same period last year.”

Halmarick suggested that a substantial increase in household spending is unlikely until the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) starts lowering interest rates. “Our base case is a start to rate cuts in February 2025, but with a clear risk that this is delayed until later this year.”

The CommBank HSI Index tracks month-on-month data at a macro level and is based on de-identified payments data from approximately 7 million CBA customers, comprising roughly 30 per cent of all Australian consumer transactions.