The 2026 financial year results for retailers listed on the Australian Securities Exchange were a mixed bag but arguably better than might have been expected.

Most retailers have managed the challenges of the last financial year and the early months of the new year with changes in strategy and store networks and increased reliance on technology to curtail operating cost pressures.

Financial results indicate that the promising consumer confidence and spending of the first half of FY 2026 for many retailers were dashed by a much more subdued second half.

Key factors in the second half that impacted on retail sales were rising fuel costs, interest rate increases, retreating housing values, inflationary pressures on households and Federal Government budget measures.

While there was an immediate financial impact on households from most of these factors, the underlying problem is fragile consumer confidence.

The most recent National Australia Bank (NAB) survey of consumer sentiment indicated that eight in 10 respondents reported higher living costs.

The increased costs prompted 54 per cent of respondents to reduce car use and 28 per cent to miss health visits while others trimmed food and liquor spending, eating out and entertainment.

The ANZ–Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence Index fell 3.4 points to 67.1 in the week ending 4 October 2026, following the Reserve Bank of Australia’s September interest rate increase.

The Westpac–Melbourne Institute Consumer Sentiment Index fell 5.2 per cent to 84.4 in September, leaving it almost 12 per cent below its level a year earlier.

That reflects a finding that 40 per cent of Australian households believe they are worse off financially now than last year, with real wages failing to match, let alone better, higher living costs.

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