The Australian Bureau of Statistics has identified signs of strain in household budgets, reporting that the value of household deposits shrank during the June 2023 quarter – the first quarterly decline since the June 2007 quarter. The value of household deposits fell A$6.3 billion, or 0.4 per cent, during the quarter to $1.6 trillion. ABS head of finance statistics Mish Tan said: “This was the first fall in deposit balances since the global financial crisis and indicates that the household sector was tapping into cash reserves amid rising costs pressures.” The decline in deposits was offset by increases in the value of household land and dwellings, which increased 3.4 per cent, superannuation balances (up 1.3 per cent) and shares (up 1.3 per cent). On the liability side, loan balances increased by $37.9 billion, or 1.4 per cent, to $2.8 trillion during the quarter. Household demand for credit was up on the three previous quarters.  Net worth grew $379 billion, or 2.6 per cent, to $15.1 trillion – the third consecutive quarter of growth in household wealth. Wealth per capita grew 2.1 per cent.