WELLINGTON, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Consumer confidence in New Zealand fell in the third quarter and remains at historically weak levels, a survey showed on Wednesday.
The Westpac-McDermott Miller consumer confidence reading dropped to 90.9 from 91.2 in the previous quarter. A reading above 100 indicates more optimists than pessimists.
Westpac said with the economy hitting a soft patch mid-year and cost of living pressures on the rise, economic confidence in New Zealand has remained soggy.
"That lingering softness in consumer confidence in the face of falling interest costs highlights that factors such as softness in the jobs market, increases in living costs and softness in house prices remain big concerns for many households," the survey said.
(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Chris Reese)
((Lucy.Craymer@thomsonreuters.com [Lucy.Craymer@thomsonreuters.com];))
