December retail spend up a notch

Photo / Herald on Sunday

Retail figures for the December quarter show a general rise in sales compared with the previous quarter.

The Statistics New Zealand figures out today indicate total retail sales volume rose by 1 per cent, while total sales value also rose by 1 per cent, or NZ$171 million.

Core retail sales volume rose by 1.3 per cent, and core sales value by NZ$77 million, or 3.2 per cent.

Appliance retailing registered a volume rise of 3.2 per cent, while cafes and restaurants were up 5.6 per cent in volume and NZ$61million in value.

ASB chief economist Nick Tuffley said today's data was weaker by both the market and the bank's expectations, particularly when the month of December was looked at in isolation.

He said surprisingly weak food sales were what held back sales relative to expectations.

"However, the increase in retail volumes over the December quarter indicated a recovery in consumer spending," Tuffley said.

Tuffley said the rise in appliance buying was in line with consumer confidence surveys that indicated consumers were becoming more confident about buying big ticket items.

"Furthermore, vehicle sales continue to recover from the very weak levels of earlier last year," he said.