Westpac records soft December retail spending

Westpac's Satish Ranchhod said spending in December was "muted". (Image: Alex Burton)

Thu, 16 Jan 2025

Despite a slight lift, Westpac data points to a soft end of year for household spending.Westpac’s retail tracker, released on Thursday, showed spending on Westpac-issued credit and debit cards was up 2% in December compared to last year. Westpac senior economist Satish Ranchhod said while it’s positive to see spending increase, it is still “very muted”, especially considering rising operating costs.“In addition, with NZ’s population increasing by about 1% last year, it also points to very limited growth...

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