NZ: Retail card spending saw a solid lift in August – ANZ

Sandeep Kanihama FXStreet Contributor

Liz Kendall, Senior Economist at ANZ, notes that New Zealand’s retail spending on electronic cards increased 1.0% m/m in August (seasonally adjusted), following a downwardly-revised 0.2% m/m lift in July.

Key Quotes

“Retail spending was again boosted by a 4.1% m/m increase in fuel spending, likely reflecting higher fuel prices.”

“‘Core’ retail spending, which strips out motor vehicle-related spending, posted a seasonally adjusted 0.7% m/m rise.”

“It’s important to view this data in context: strong growth in August comes on the back of modest growth through the first half of the year, particularly in the context of still-strong population growth.”

“But in trend terms, growth in ECT looks to have stabilised – perhaps supported by the Families Package – with the trend in retail and core spending up 0.6% and 0.4% m/m in August respectively.”

“We will be looking to see resilience in spending in coming months, given concerns about the strength of economic momentum into the second half of the year.”

Author

Sandeep Kanihama

FXStreet Contributor

Sandeep Kanihama is an FX Editor and Analyst with FXstreet having principally focus area on Asia and European markets with commodity, currency and equities coverage. He is stationed in the Indian capital city of Delhi.

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