Despite six days of March spent in lockdown, consumers spent $47.3 million in Whanganui during the month.
The result reflects strong trading up until the move into Covid-19 alert level 4 as well as increased numbers in food retailing throughout the lockdown, Whanganui & Partners chief executive Mark Ward said.
It was a 2.6 per cent increase on March 2019 for Whanganui, with New Zealand as a whole experiencing a 5.6 per cent drop in consumer spend over March this year.
Ward said the numbers point to a strong foundation for the local retail sector as the economy reopens.
• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website
"Our consumer spending was rising right up until we hit alert level 4. We know April's figures will be down on the previous year but even under lockdown, Whanganui's weekly consumer spend results have been consistently stronger than the New Zealand average.
"It's a challenging time for the economy, but the local retail sector had good momentum going into lockdown and there are promising signs that some of that was retained.
"Looking at other regional centres, we know not everyone is experiencing the same thing. For example, Palmerston North's consumer spend was down 4.8 per cent in March versus the same month last year."
Ward said he was pleased with the move to level 3 which allows more Whanganui businesses to resume trading.
"It's a crucial time for our retailers. Let's support them as they adapt to the changing trading environment they're operating in. The retail sector is our district's third largest employer and hospitality is our seventh largest. Local families benefit when the community chooses to spend money with them."
"I'd love to continue reporting positive trends in this space over the coming months, so let's all get behind local businesses and show them how much we value their contribution to our economy, community and lives."
'It has been challenging but it was important to see it through.'