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SA spending on tobacco at record low – but booze still soars

South Australians’ spending on cigarettes and other tobacco products has hit a record low – but expenditure on alcohol is approaching a new peak, latest figures show.

Dec 05, 2018, updated Dec 05, 2018
Spending on tobacco products has hit a record low. Photo: Sara Matzec / Flickr

Spending on tobacco products has hit a record low. Photo: Sara Matzec / Flickr

SA households spent $348 million on cigarettes and tobacco products in the September quarter – the lowest expenditure on tobacco products on record.

That’s according to seasonally-adjusted household consumption figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics this morning.

But household spending on alcohol is approaching a record peak.

South Australians spent $379 million on booze in the September quarter, nearing the record $381 million spent on alcohol in the three months to June last year.

Meanwhile, spending on clothing in has been declining since late last year in South Australia, dropping to $439 million in the latest figures.

Less money is also being spent buying cars. Household spending on vehicle purchases fell to $343 million in the September quarter, down from a peak of $360 million in late 2017.

Spending on electricity has been on a downward trend, according to the figures, since the December quarter of 2016, when it peaked at $555 million.

It was $486 million in the September quarter – about the same as the previous quarter.

In the national figures, the Australian economy grew 0.3 per cent in the three months to September, driven mainly by increased consumer spending on food and housing.

ABS chief economist Bruce Hockman said domestic growth was mainly driven by in increased household spending on non-discretionary items, supported by moderate rises in household income.

Overall national consumer spending on discretionary items slowed during the quarter.

Wages rose in all states and territories except the Northern Territory.

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