Consumers and business are relying more on credit cards to manage payment obligations and overcome uneven cashflow, but they are keeping their account balances under control.
The latest Reserve Bank payments data show that the value of domestic purchases on personal credit and charge cards was $25.4 billion in March – an increase of six per cent over the same time last year and a record for the data set.
Household spending has increased by only 2.1 per cent over that period, according to ABS data.
The value of domestic purchases on commercial cards was $7.9 billion in March – an increase of 11.3 per cent over the same period last year and also a record for the data set.
Balances accruing interest on personal and commercial cards were $18.5 billion in March – an increase of 0.47 per cent over the same period last year.
The value of domestic debit card transactions has fallen in recent months, from $47.6 billion in January to $47.3 billion in March.
The value of cash withdrawals has also eased a little in recent months, from $8.91 billion in December to $8.89 billion in March.