Credit and debit card spending decreased for all sectors between January and February 2022, Stats NZ said today.
| Category |
| Month | Actual | Seasonally adjusted |
| Feb-20 | 5691140000 | 5902989000 |
| Mar-20 | 5651491000 | 5631664000 |
| Apr-20 | 2870608000 | 2963290000 |
| May-20 | 5188203000 | 5277428000 |
| Jun-20 | 5701230000 | 6083269000 |
| Jul-20 | 5968957000 | 6118316000 |
| Aug-20 | 5438997000 | 5702719000 |
| Sep-20 | 5734401000 | 6086959000 |
| Oct-20 | 6250722000 | 6083476000 |
| Nov-20 | 6256029000 | 6056744000 |
| Dec-20 | 7459526000 | 6027214000 |
| Jan-21 | 6005676000 | 6026968000 |
| Feb-21 | 5391444000 | 5850761000 |
| Mar-21 | 5937346000 | 5884248000 |
| Apr-21 | 5989711000 | 6157278000 |
| May-21 | 6129789000 | 6259580000 |
| Jun-21 | 5930914000 | 6309890000 |
| Jul-21 | 6252189000 | 6338247000 |
| Aug-21 | 4821625000 | 5105376000 |
| Sep-21 | 4878099000 | 5136112000 |
| Oct-21 | 5774430000 | 5674164000 |
| Nov-21 | 6436912000 | 6216635000 |
| Dec-21 | 7770984000 | 6240234000 |
| Jan-22 | 6346436000 | 6420064000 |
| Feb-22 | 5449256000 | 5921962000 |
Seasonally adjusted total credit and debit card spending in February 2022 decreased by $640 million (7.6 percent) compared with January 2022.
“This drop across the board was the first of its kind since August 2021, when the country was in lockdown at alert level 4,” business performance manager Ricky Ho said.
| Industry (ANZSIC06) | $ |
| Consumables | -141269000 |
| Durables | -50891000 |
| Apparel | -49779000 |
| Motor Vehicles excl. fuel | -9109000 |
| Fuel | -34639000 |
| Non-retail excl. services | -89980000 |
| Services | -11741000 |
The total amount spent on consumables in February, which includes groceries and liquor, decreased by $141 million (5.7 percent) from the previous month.
Apart from consumables, the downturn was particularly driven by card spending on apparel, which includes clothing, shoes, jewellery, and watches, down $50 million (14.4 percent), and on fuel, down $35 million (5.9 percent).
“The decrease in fuel spending coincided with more people working from home due to the spread of Omicron and isolation rules being in place. In addition, rising fuel prices may have influenced people’s decisions on whether or not to use their cars,” Mr Ho said.
Hospitality affected once again by the spread of COVID
In actual terms, while Kiwis spent $5.4 billion in retail using electronic cards, up $58 million (1.1 percent) from February 2021, spending on hospitality, which includes accommodation and restaurants, saw a drop of $97 million (10 percent).
“With the spread of Omicron in the community, people may have avoided travelling or eating out,” Mr Ho said.
Values are only available at the national level and are not adjusted for price changes.
