February Spending Shows Continued Growth

Media Release
Date: 7-March-13

February Spending Shows Continued Growth

Figures released today by leading payments provider Paymark show that Kiwis are continuing to part with their hard-earned cash. Spending through the Paymark network from January to February was up a seasonally adjusted 0.9 per cent.

The increase marks the fifth consecutive monthly gain and is the largest five-month gain since June 2007.

Paymark Head of Sales and Marketing, Paul Whiston, says that the momentum in spending is very encouraging.

“We’re pleasantly surprised to see spending maintain its upward impetus this month, great news for a number of retailers across they country. In terms of annual growth, we’ve seen a 1.8 per cent increase in the total value of transactions from February 2012 to 2013.

“This is slightly lower than the annual growth rates we’ve been seeing in recent months, however it was to be expected with the extra 29th day in 2012 making quite a difference to spending totals,” says Whiston.

Whiston also notes that the picture isn’t rosy for everyone.

“We know there are still sectors and regions that are finding things tough, and experiencing limited growth, if any. Yet this is certainly an encouraging trend we hope will continue.”

New and used car retailers are reaping the benefits according to the latest figures, with sales up a whopping 15.4 per cent. This was followed closely by specialist food retailing (15.3%) and taxi services (13.6%).

“Valentine’s Day saw a slight lift in spending on flowers and gifts, however the overall effect was not enough to off-set the shorter 28-day month,” says Whiston.

Both sectors saw a slight decline year-on-year, down 1.1 and 0.3 per cent respectively.

The hardware and home decorating sector once again saw strong growth, up 10.9 per cent.

Regionally, Paymark, which processes about 75 per cent of all electronic transactions in New Zealand, saw the South Island take all three spots on the podium. Canterbury had the highest regional spending growth, up 4.6 per cent, followed by Otago (4.0%) and South Canterbury (3.4%).

“Canterbury continues its run at the top end of the growth board, and coupled with the ongoing increases in spending on hardware and home decorating it looks to be a sure sign that the rebuild is in full swing,” continued Whiston.

“All regions saw some growth during February, with the exception of Gisborne which remained static.”

Nationwide, the number of card transactions was 1.8 per higher than a year ago with credit card usage up 3 per cent and debit card usage up 1.5 per cent.

--

About Paymark

In November 2009, Paymark honoured a significant business, retail, and economic milestone with the celebration of its 20th birthday. Since its inception in 1989 when three banks came together to form Electronic Transaction Services Limited (now known as Paymark Limited), Paymark has grown to become an integral part of New Zealand’s economic landscape with arguably the best EFTPOS system in the world.

Quick facts:

- By March 1990 volumes through the network exceeded 1 million transactions a month
- 1994 the company increased its computer processing power to accommodate volumes exceeding 10 million transactions a month
- 28 August 1996, Paymark makes history by installing an off-shore EFTPOS terminal at a general store, Scott Base, Antarctica
- In 1998 Paymark passed another milestone as the 1 billionth EFTPOS transaction was processed
- In February 2012, Paymark processed its 10 billionth transaction
- More than 74,000 merchants and 116,000 terminals are currently connected to the network that is now 3DES and EMV compliant. Today, the Paymark network processes over 75% of all electronic transactions in the New Zealand retail market on behalf of more than 50 card issuers and acquirers.

ENDS

© Scoop Media