New Zealand electronic card retail sales rise year-on-year in June

New Zealand electronic card retail sales rose on a year-on-year basis and was flat on sequential basis. On a year-on-year basis, the retail card sales rose 4.5 percent in the month. On the month-on-month basis, retail spending was flat because the high hospitality spending was countered by low fuel prices. The rise in spending on hospitality could be greatly due to the influx of British and Irish Lions fans, noted Statistics New Zealand business indicators manager Sue Chapman.

Spending in hospitality was up NZD 23 million, while fuel spending dropped NZD 19 million in June on sequential basis. Core retail spending, stripping the vehicle-related industries, were up 0.8 percent in June following a 0.3 percent drop in May.

Trends for the total, retail and core retail series have been rising since the series started in October 2002. In actual terms, retail spending using electronic cards was NZD 4.9 billion in June, a rise from NZD 207 million from June 2016.

After adjustment for seasonal effects, spending in the retail industries were up 0.7 percent in the June 2017 quarter, following a 1.5 percent rise in the first quarter.

"The rise in retail card spending in the June quarter was driven by an increase in consumables and hospitality spending. However, this increase in retail spending was moderated by a strong decrease in fuel spending,” Mrs. Chapman said.

Out of six retail industries, spending was up in four in the second quarter. The biggest rise came from the grocery and liquor. Core retail spending, which strips vehicle-related industries, rose 1.2 percent in the second quarter, following a rise of 1.2 percent in the March quarter. In actual terms, retail spending using electronic cards rose NZD 14.9 billion in the second quarter, up NZD 675 million from the second quarter of 2016.

At 22:00 GMT the FxWirePro's Hourly Strength Index of New Zealand Dollar was neutral at -31.654, while the FxWirePro's Hourly Strength Index US Dollar was neutral at 28.4229. For more details on FxWirePro's Currency Strength Index, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex

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