Card transactions edge up in April

Photo / Herald on Sunday

Evidence is growing that consumer spending may finally be showing signs of life, after spending on electronic cards edged up again last month.

Latest figures from Statistics New Zealand show the seasonally adjusted value of electronic card spending increased 1.7 per cent in April, driven by higher spending on food.

ASB economist Christina Leung said the broad-based improvement in retail spending in April was encouraging, and suggested households were becoming less cautious in regards to discretionary spending.

"Nonetheless, the recovery in retail spending looks to be a gradual one and there continues to be no urgency for the Reserve Bank to lift the Official Cash Rate."

The value of transactions rose in all industry groups except services, which was flat.

Core retail (which excludes the motor vehicle-related industries) increased 1.6 per cent, helped by a 2.3 per cent increase in spending on consumables, which includes food, liquor, and chemist retailing.

Spending on hospitality also increased last month, by 2.4 per cent, as Kiwis spent more on accommodation and eating out.

When the two vehicle related-industries were included, the value of transactions in retail increased 1.5 per cent.

Fuel retailing recorded its smallest monthly rise since August 2010, up just 1 per cent.

Trends for the value of transactions in the total and retail series have been increasing since January 2009, and the rate of increase has picked up since July last year.

This information release includes data for Canterbury, however Statistics New Zealand said it was not able to offer any insight into the impact of the Christchurch earthquake, because the data was not broken down by region.

- NZ HERALD ONLINE