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New Zealand Credit Card Spending, Balances Fall in April

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Credit card spending in New Zealand decreased by 0.3% month on month to NZ$4.28 billion in April after a 0.7% increase in the previous month, while credit card balances fell 1.1% to NZ$5.96 billion in April, data from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand showed Thursday.

Domestic billings on New Zealand-issued cards fell by 1.2% to NZ$3.68 billion in April, following a 0.8% increase in the previous month. Billings on overseas-issued cards fell to NZ$598 million from NZ$726 million.

Compared with the year-earlier period, credit card spending rose 2.9% in April after a 0.4% increase a year ago.

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