Card spending falls 2.2 percent
Large falls in grocery and liquor retailing and in fuel retailing contributed to April’s decrease.
“The fall in retail card spending is unusually large. It was driven by a drop in sales of groceries and liquor, as well as an unexpected dip in fuel,” business performance senior manager Peter Dolan said. “The drop in fuel sales was unexpected because petrol prices rose as much as 9 cents a litre during the April month.”
The motor vehicle industry was the only industry with relatively good growth, with a 2.9 per cent or $4.9 million increase compared with April 2018.
However, card spending fell across three of the six retail industries. The largest movements were:
• Consumables, including grocery and liquor retailing, down $72 million (3.6 per cent) – more than reversing a $60 million rise in March (up 3.1 per cent)
• Fuel, down $17 million (2.9 per cent)
• Hospitality, down $9.0 million (0.9 per cent).