21 August 2008
Electronic card spending increases, trend remains flat
After adjusting for seasonal effects, the total Electronic Card Transaction (ECT) series increased 0.4 percent in July
2008 compared with June 2008, Statistics New Zealand said today. The durables, fuel retailing and consumables industries
were the main contributors to this increase, which was partly offset by decreases in the non-retail and hospitality
industries.
The trend for the total ECT series has flattened since March 2008. Prior to this the trend generally increased between
0.5 and 1.0 percent per month. After adjusting for seasonal effects, the retail ECT series was 0.8 percent higher in
July 2008 than in June 2008. The core retail ECT series (which excludes the motor vehicle-related industries) increased
1.2 percent in July following a 1.5 percent decrease in June. Both series have been variable since March 2008, in
particular the core series, with alternating monthly decreases and increases.
The trend in the core ECT series has been flat since September 2007. By contrast, the trend series for retail ECT has
generally been stronger over the same period, mainly because of higher spending on fuel due to increasing fuel prices.
There were 84 million electronic transactions in July 2008 with a value of $4.6 billion. Geoff Bascand
Government Statistician 21 August 2008
ENDS