New Zealand Overall Credit Card Spending Gains 0.2% In December

(RTTNews) - Overall credit card spending in New Zealand picked up a seasonally adjusted 0.5 percent on month in December, Statistics New Zealand said on Tuesday.

That was shy of expectations for an increase of 0.4 percent following the 1.4 percent gain in November.

Retail credit card spending was up 0.5 percent on month - in line with expectations and down from the 1.2 percent spike in the previous month.

The total was boosted by a 4.0 percent rise in fuel spending.

"The increase in fuel spending was driven by high average fuel prices continuing on from November," retail manager Sue Chapman said.

However, core retail spending, excluding fuel and vehicles, was down 0.2 percent in December, after three consecutive monthly rises.

"The fall in core retail spending was driven by a decrease in spending on clothing and footwear, after a strong increase in November," Chapman said.

Shoppers spent less on clothing and hospitality in December, down NZ$6.8 million (2.2 percent) and NZ$1.3 million (0.1 percent), respectively.

Spending on furniture, hardware, and appliances (durables) remained unchanged in December, after a 1.2 percent rise in November.

Actual retail spending using electronic cards was NZ$6.7 billion in the December 2017 month, up NZ$214 million (3.3 percent) from the December 2016 month.

Retail card spending was up a seasonally adjusted 1.3 percent in the December 2017 quarter after a 0.2 fall in the September 2017 quarter.

"The rise in retail card spending in the December quarter was driven by an increase in consumables and hospitality industries spending," Chapman said.

Spending rose in four of the six retail industries in the December quarter. The largest rises came from the hospitality (up NZ$51 million or 1.8 percent) and consumables industries (up NZ$51 million or 0.9 percent).

Core retail spending (which excludes the vehicle-related industries) rose 0.7 percent in the December 2017 quarter, after a 0.8 percent rise in the September 2017 quarter.

In actual terms, retail card spending was NZ$17.3 billion in the December 2017 quarter, up NZ$505 million (3.0 percent) from the December 2016 quarter.