Retail card spending rose 0.7 percent in the March 2023 month compared with February 2023, when adjusted for seasonal effects, according to data released by Stats NZ today.
| Month | Actual | Seasonally adjusted |
| Mar-20 | 5651491000 | 5633414000 |
| Apr-20 | 2870608000 | 2965227000 |
| May-20 | 5188203000 | 5281796000 |
| Jun-20 | 5701230000 | 6102708000 |
| Jul-20 | 5968957000 | 6174566000 |
| Aug-20 | 5438997000 | 5719858000 |
| Sep-20 | 5734401000 | 6076374000 |
| Oct-20 | 6250722000 | 6061641000 |
| Nov-20 | 6256029000 | 6027195000 |
| Dec-20 | 7459526000 | 6013089000 |
| Jan-21 | 6005676000 | 5990356000 |
| Feb-21 | 5391444000 | 5853675000 |
| Mar-21 | 5937346000 | 5883043000 |
| Apr-21 | 5989711000 | 6162858000 |
| May-21 | 6129789000 | 6281264000 |
| Jun-21 | 5930914000 | 6330240000 |
| Jul-21 | 6252189000 | 6421789000 |
| Aug-21 | 4821625000 | 5125580000 |
| Sep-21 | 4878099000 | 5124574000 |
| Oct-21 | 5774430000 | 5631846000 |
| Nov-21 | 6436912000 | 6189987000 |
| Dec-21 | 7770984000 | 6204734000 |
| Jan-22 | 6346436000 | 6384952000 |
| Feb-22 | 5449256000 | 5930141000 |
| Mar-22 | 5910254000 | 5841498000 |
| Apr-22 | 6113927000 | 6267648000 |
| May-22 | 6171502000 | 6391876000 |
| Jun-22 | 6042842000 | 6401657000 |
| Jul-22 | 6221006000 | 6432711000 |
| Aug-22 | 6116981000 | 6462442000 |
| Sep-22 | 6270883000 | 6546619000 |
| Oct-22 | 6734272000 | 6602924000 |
| Nov-22 | 6895341000 | 6620856000 |
| Dec-22 | 8146272000 | 6464143000 |
| Jan-23 | 6515834000 | 6635929000 |
| Feb-23 | 6085125000 | 6631647000 |
| Mar-23 | 6824429000 | 6677096000 |
“Retail card spending rose across all categories except for groceries and liquor,” business performance manager Ricky Ho said.
Groceries and liquor (consumables) fell $32 million (1.2 percent) in March, which came after a rise of a similar magnitude in February.
| Industry (ANZSIC06) | % |
| Consumables | -1.2 |
| Durables | 0.2 |
| Apparel | 1.5 |
| Motor vehicles excl. fuel | 5.5 |
| Fuel | 1.3 |
| Non-retail excl. services | 11.3 |
| Services | 2 |
Total seasonally adjusted card spending rose in March, up $278 million (3.1 percent).
Seasonally adjusted card spending on non-retail industries, up $225 million (11.3 percent) from the previous month, drove this increase. Non-retail industries include travel agencies and tour arrangement services, health and pharmaceuticals, wholesaling, and other industries.
March quarter retail card spending increases
Seasonally adjusted retail spending in the March 2023 quarter increased by $227 million (1.2 percent), while the total spend increased by $401 million (1.7 percent) from the December 2022 quarter.
The largest increase in the retail industries was seen in the groceries and liquor spending category, up $146 million (1.9 percent). It was partly offset by a fall in fuel spending, down $147 million (8.1 percent).
“The rise in total card spending during both the March quarter and March month was largely attributed to a lift in spending within the non-retail industries,” Ho said.
Actual retail card spending was $19 billion in the March 2023 quarter, up 9.7 percent from the March 2022 quarter. Spending on hospitality had the largest increase, up $933 million (32.3 percent) compared with the March 2022 quarter.
Values are only available at the national level and are not adjusted for price changes.
Electronic card transaction data covers the use of credit and debit cards in shops or online and includes both the retail and services industries.
