Electronic card spending down in December

The seasonally adjusted value of the total Electronic Card Transaction (ECT) series decreased 0.7 percent
in December 2008 compared with November 2008, Statistics New Zealand said today. The retail ECT
series had a similar result, decreasing 0.5 percent, whereas the value of the core retail ECT series (which
excludes the motor vehicle-related industries) increased 0.2 percent in December 2008.

The decrease in the total ECT series was due to falls in the non-retail and fuel retailing industries, whereas
the decrease in the retail ECT series was due entirely to the fuel retailing industry. In both series, the
falls were partly offset by a substantial rise in the durables industry and smaller rises in the remaining retail
industries.

The small increase in the core retail ECT series in December was primarily due to a rise in the durables
industry. There were rises in all the core retail industries.

The growth rates in the total ECT trend series and the retail ECT trend series have eased since July 2008
and are now both negative. The core retail ECT trend series has eased since August 2008 and is now flat.
There were 99 million electronic transactions in December 2008 with a value of $5.6 billion.

Geoff Bascand
22 January 2009
Government Statistician
END

See also Hot Off The Press information release Electronic Card Transactions: December 2008.