Rate Cut Brings Hope For Christmas Retail Trading

Today’s cut in the Official Cash Rate is being welcomed by the retail sector during one of the busiest weeks of the year.

Retail NZ is hopeful that today’s OCR announcement will improve consumer confidence in the run-up to Christmas. A rise in confidence will help retailers, who have been suffering a continued downturn in sales.

Earlier this week, Stats NZ’s latest Retail Trade Survey showed that core retail sales fell 1.7% compared to the same quarter of 2023. Total retail sales (including motor vehicles and parts, and fuel) were down 2.8%.

This aligns with Retail NZ’s recent Retail Radar quarterly survey which found that 70% of survey respondents did not meet their sales targets in the July-September quarter.

“A turnaround in the economy can't come soon enough for the retail sector, so we are delighted at the Reserve Bank’s decision to cut the OCR by 50 basis points to 4.25%,” Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young says.

“With Black Friday sales already underway, this will be welcome news for retailers. Strong pre-Christmas sales are critical to retailers meeting their annual sales targets.”

© Scoop Media