Online, card spending rise in September, post lockdown

cards
Card spending is on the rise again.

Spending online surged in September, but by a lesser amount than when Auckland was in lockdown in August. 

Data from Marketview showed New Zealanders spent 17 per cent more online in September than the same month last year, but in August – when Auckland was in lockdown for much of the month – spending rose by 27.1 per cent. 

Separate data from Statistics New Zealand showed spending by electronic cards rose by 7.3 per cent year on year in September, a higher level than in August as Auckland moved from Covid-19 alert level 3 to alert level 2.  

“Retail spending rallied in September as Auckland moved down to Covid-19 alert level 2, plus extra restrictions, at the start of the month, and the rest of New Zealand dropped to alert level 1 later in the month,” said SNZ retail statistics manager Kathy Hicks.

Meanwhile, Marketview said that given most retailers were able to open their doors again, it wasn’t too surprising to see online spending dropped 8.3 per cent compared to August. 

“Roughly two-thirds of our online spending went to domestic online businesses (66.8 per cent),” the report said. “This has been a pretty typical split for 2020 as a whole (averaging 68.4 per cent to date). Only at the height of Level 4 lockdown (April-May) did the allocation rise to over 70 per cent domestic.”

During September, clothing & footwear retailers experienced an 18-per-cent increase in online spending, with overall sales up 8 per cent, while electrical and electronic goods sales rose by 21 per cent online, but just 7 per cent overall.

You have 7 articles remaining. Unlock 15 free articles a month, it’s free.