Retailers on the ropes as consumers all but close their wallets

August 19, 2026 — 3:50pm

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Punch-drunk retailers are attempting to lift themselves off the mat as consumers give them a dose of their own financial reality, keeping cash in their pockets.

At the halfway mark of this year’s earnings season, the shareholder jury has spoken – the discretionary retail sector is in an unambiguous slump. Investors are just tapping out. The cyclical retail sector will eventually recover, but the trigger isn’t on the near-term horizon.

Meanwhile, consumers face a perfect storm of cost-of-living pressures thanks to interest rate rises, fuel prices, Middle East war-fuelled inflation and stalling real wages growth. Tumbling house prices and a lack of real estate turnover are the rotten cherry on top.

To date, just one major listed retailer, Breville, has stopped short of flagging a performance warning – while releasing a result that included strong........

© The Sydney Morning Herald