Australian consumer confidence plunges to worst level since 1990s after RBA rate rise

Key indicator dropped about 20% after the Reserve Bank last month announced the highest interest rates since 2011

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Australian households are the most persistently pessimistic they have been since the early-1990s recession, after a fourth rate rise this year.

Confidence among Australian consumers has plunged about 20% since the Reserve Bank of Australia lifted interest rates to the highest levels since 2011, according to the Westpac–Melbourne Institute consumer sentiment index.