The snapshot draws on the Group’s proprietary transactional and balance sheet data, unlocking what is considered to be one of the richest data sources on Australian businesses nationwide.

The key insights from the report include:

• Businesses have largely managed to weather the unfolding economic slowdown.
• Progress on cost inflation is more than offsetting the decline in consumer demand. As a result, their measure of business cash flow was steady over the December quarter
• Despite the Reserve Bank raising the cash rate by 425 basis points, total debt servicing costs for businesses are below pre-pandemic levels.
• This has been underpinned by prudent financial management by many businesses during the pandemic, as they paid down debt and built up strong financial buffers.
• These buffers remain largely intact. For SME customers who are experiencing a sharper slowdown, buffers are helping to bridge the gap.
• For their commercial customers, strong financial buffers and resilient demand are giving them the confidence to grow and invest.
• There are still some grey skies ahead, but the resilience of businesses to date and the preservation of important financial buffers gives the bank confidence that the sector will continue to navigate the period ahead.