Hospitality spending on cards exceeds $1 billion in December

Friday 13th January 2017

New Zealand seasonally adjusted retail spending on electronic cards eased in December although actual retail spending reached the highest-ever monthly figure as the tourism boom continued.

Retail spending fell a seasonally adjusted 0.1 percent last month, after a 0.1 percent drop in November and a 0.5 percent rise in October, Statistics New Zealand said. Actual retail spending climbed 5.8 percent to $6.5 billion in December from the same month a year earlier.

"This is the first month card spending in hospitality exceeded $1 billion," business indicators manager Tehseen Islam said. "The higher hospitality spending coincides with a period of rising international tourism and residents enjoying Christmas and New Year holiday breaks."

Core retail spending, which excludes vehicle-related industries, dropped 0.8 percent in December from November, with spending on durables down 1.5 percent. Hospitality rose 0.5 percent and apparel was up 1.3 percent.

Of the non-retail industries, non-retail excluding services was unchanged from November while spending in the services industry rose 1.1 percent.

Spending on fuel rose 4.4 percent, while vehicle spending slipped 0.1 percent.

In actual terms, card-holders made 153 million transactions in December with an average value of $54.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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