New Australian leader says he's given economy confidence boost, but won't detail reforms

CANBERRA, Australia – Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says Australia's sluggish economy has been given a boost since he assumed the top job last week, but he gave no timetable for the policy reforms to promote productivity and investment.

Turnbull ousted Prime Minister Tony Abbott in a ballot of government lawmakers, saying that the government was not successful in providing the economic leadership.

Turnbull told Sky News television on Wednesday that Australia has already seen a rise in business confidence because his government is talking confidently about the future.

Chris Richardson, a partner in Deloitte Access Economics, says he suspects the prime minister is correct.

Consumer confidence soared 8.7 percent in the latest weekly ANZ-Roy Morgan report.