The impact of the Omicron COVID-19 variant might hinder the prospect of Australians spending big in 2022 as not so positive signs have already appeared in the country’s economic landscape. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) reported that it’s household spending intentions index that combines an analysis of CBA payments data, loan applications and publicly available search activity on Google Trends increased by 2.5 percent last December. That is the highest level recorded since the bank began the survey in July 2017, with travel, transport and retail sectors witnessing the largest gains. According to CBA senior economist Belinda Allen, last December’s data showed that household spending continued to recover from the Delta lockdowns, supported by an estimated $260 billion (US$188 billion) in accumulated household savings. “The boost in the travel and transport sector also reflects increased mobility around the country in December,” she said. Nonetheless, the number of COVID-19 cases …