Boxing Day spending up on last year

December has been a strong month for retailers, and Boxing Day was no exception. File photo / Getty Images

Boxing Day spenders were out in force yesterday with transaction figures up 6.9 per cent this year compared with last year.

Just under $106 million was spent across the country yesterday, figures released today by electronics transaction company Paymark reveal.

Shopping malls around the country were packed out yesterday, with roads around The Base mall in Hamilton gridlocked, while Westfield Albany, St Lukes and Westgate had the busiest day of the year.

Auckland's Sylvia Park also reported slightly bigger crowds than last year with between 60,000 and 70,000 going through the doors.

December as a whole had been a good month for retailers, with steady growth across most sectors and regions, Paymark sales and marketing head Paul Whiston said.

"The growth is not as high as we saw a few years back, which suggests perhaps that we've found a level of stability in the wider Christmas shopping period.

"Growth of 6.9 per cent across the country is a good positive end to the year for retailers however," he said.

Steady growth across the month of December might have been assisted by a vast number of big sales and heavy discounts across longer periods of time than in previous years.

Wellington's Boxing Day spending was up 11.6 per cent on last year - the largest increase in the country. Hawke's Bay spending was down 2.8 per cent - the largest drop in the country.

The clothing and building/trade sectors experienced the biggest surges this year.