Australian consumer confidence slipping

There has been a dampening of confidence in Australian consumers after new Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull took charge, a monthly measure of consumer confidence said on Tuesday.

ANZ-Roy Morgan gauge of consumer confidence, in its report released on Tuesday, said the index tumbled 3.4 percent in the past week, reported Xinhua news agency.

There is uncertainty about the economic outlook and analysis by the International Monetary Fund forecasts Australia's growth could be frail for a few years.

"While Turnbull's appointment (after Tony Abbott) was greeted with considerable optimism, the challenges facing Australian households remain front of mind and make it difficult to sustain a lift in confidence," ANZ's co-head of Australian economics Felicity Emmett said in Monday's statement.