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The total value of overall credit card spending in New Zealand was down a seasonally adjusted 0.1 percent on month in October, Statistics New Zealand said on Monday.
That missed expectations for an increase of 0.3 percent following the downwardly revised 1.2 percent increase in September (originally 1.3 percent).
Retail credit card spending added 0.1 percent on month - also missing expectations for a gain of 0.6 percent and down from 1.1 percent in the previous month.
Spending in the core retail industries (which excludes the vehicle-related industries) was flat.
By industry, the movements were: fuel, up NZ$9.1 million (1.4 percent); durables, up NZ$4.7 million (0.4 percent); hospitality, up NZ$2.3 million (0.2 percent); consumables, up NZ$1.5 million (0.1 percent); vehicles (excluding fuel), down NZ$3.5 million (2.0 percent); and apparel, down NZ$3.7 million (1.2 percent).
"A quiet October for retail card spending followed rises of more than 1 percent in both September and August," retail statistics manager Sue Chapman said. "Most retail industries showed softer results in October, except the fuel industry. Petrol prices at the pump reached a record high in October, then started falling towards the end of the month."
The non-retail (excluding services) category fell NZ$13 million (0.8 percent), and the services category rose NZ$0.4 million (0.2 percent). The non-retail (excluding services) category includes travel, health, and wholesaling.
In actual terms, cardholders made 150 million transactions across all industries in October 2018, with an average of NZ$49 per transaction. The total amount spent using electronic cards was NZ$7.4 billion.
