21.02.201823:04:00UTC+00New Zealand Credit Card Spending Falls In January

Total credit card spending in New Zealand decreased for the first time in five months in January, data from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand showed Thursday.

Credit card spending dropped 0.6 percent month-over-month in January, reversing a 0.6 percent rise in December.

Domestic billings also declined 0.6 percent over the month to NZ$3.25 billion and overseas billings slid by 0.7 percent.

On an annual basis, credit card spending growth eased to 4.6 percent in January from 6.2 percent in the prior month.

Data also showed that credit card balances increased at a slower pace of 0.2 percent in January, following a 0.4 percent rise in the preceding month. Yearly growth moderated to 5.4 percent from 5.6 percent.