NZ: Retail spending on electronic cards increased 1.1% in September - ANZ

Liz Kendall, Senior Economist at ANZ, notes that New Zealand’ retail spending on electronic cards increased 1.1% m/m in September (seasonally adjusted), after a solid 1.1% m/m lift in August. 

Key Quotes

“Retail spending was strong across the board, with consumables (1% m/m) and apparel (0.9%) posting strong lifts. Reflecting this broad-based strength, ‘core’ retail spending, which strips out motor vehicle-related spending, posted a seasonally adjusted 1.1% m/m rise.”

“Today’s data finishes Q3 on a firm footing, with core and total retail spending up 2.1% q/q and 2.3% q/q respectively. It also confirms that ECT has turned higher in trend terms, although the data has oscillated a lot of late. The trend in retail and core spending was up 0.8% and 0.7% in September. For both, the trend is running at 1.4% q/q.”

“Nonetheless, at the margin, today’s data temper concerns that the household sector may be reining in their spending in response to financial pressures.”