Who cares about high fuel prices? - Business - Business - smh.com.au

SHOPPERS have defied record-busting petrol prices to splurge on winter coats, boots and toys with a fervour not seen since the housing boom.
Raising fears the Reserve Bank may again raise interest rates this year, annual growth in retail sales has rebounded to 7.4 per cent.
Figures from the Bureau of Statistics show consumers are once again lashing out on shoes and clothes, with sales up 2.7 per cent in April compared to March. Sales of recreational goods were up 2 per cent and retail sales as a whole 1.4 per cent.
The spending spree comes despite petrol prices jumping more than 12c a litre in the month.
An equities economist with CommSec, Andrew Mitchell, said the rebound was "astonishing" given escalating bowser prices.
"The rise in retail spending indicates Australians have successfully altered their behaviour to avoid absorbing the full impact of soaring petrol prices," he said.
This had been achieved by shifting to public transport and cars that were more fuel-efficient, he said
An unseasonably warm March was also thought to have boosted the number as people delayed buying woollen coats until April.
Department store sales surged 1.5 per cent for April as indicated by last week's strong sales reports from David Jones and Myer.
Proving that when the going gets tough, the tough get spending, Victoria was at the forefront of the spending splurge, up 2.7 per cent.
NSW households put on a reasonable showing, spending 1.1 per cent more than in the previous month.
A senior economist at National Australia Bank, David de Garis, warned the shameless spending spree could attract unwanted attention from the Reserve Bank, which could raise rates as soon as August to tamp inflation.
"These data very much keep the RBA in play as far as monetary policy is concerned," Mr de Garis warned.
But with the latest interest rate rise yet to hit, some warned the consumer resurgence could be short lived.
"Australian households are now very sensitive to interest rate changes because they are carrying historically high amounts of debt," Mr Mitchell said.
Separate figures showed the NSW economy was approaching crunch point as approvals of new homes and units teetered near two-decade lows.
Building approvals have tumbled 23 per cent in the past year, to 2349 a month.
The chief economist at Challenger Finance, Ron Woods, said the number of NSW approvals was "frighteningly low" given the housing demands of a growing population.
"Back in 1983, there were about 6 dwelling units approved per 10,000 people in NSW," he said. "Today there are just over half as few approved, [at] 3.4 flats and houses per 10,000 people."