Significant rise in April card spending

(Source: Bigstock)

Seasonally adjusted debit and credit card spending rose 7 per cent during April to $551 million, according to Stats NZ.

Compared to the previous month, spending rose 1.7 per cent.

“With New Zealand moving to the Orange setting just before Easter, Kiwis could enjoy the long weekend and the school holidays with greater freedom. This is reflected in the electronic card spending data, which saw increases across all spending categories,” said business performance manager, Ricky Ho.

Spending on consumables such as groceries and liquor increased by 5.2 per cent to $118 million while the apparel industry such as shoes, jewellery and clothes saw a 16.8 per cent increase to $46 million. Overall core retail saw an increase of 7.4 per cent.

Between March and April, total card spending on services such as repair and maintenance, personal care and funeral services rose by 6.9 per cent to $21 million.  

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