Australians Using Credit Cards More – RBA Credit Card Statistics June 2009
Posted August 21st, 2009
Credit card usage in Australia has risen sharply in June. But despite this increase in our readiness to spend money with credit cards, we are holding back due to the global recession according to economists.
June credit card usage $19.365 billion, the highest so far this year!
This is a 9.2 per cent increase from the spending of May 2009. These figures were published by The Reserve Bank of Australia in their latest monthly bulletin.
On another note, here are some more interesting figures relating to credit cards:
- Cash advances were up 14.9 per cent.
- Credit and charge card purchases were up by 8.9 per cent.
- Credit card holders repayments totalled $19.303 billion in June. This is 7.27 per cent higher than tin May.
- The average outstanding credit card balance in June was $3127.05.
Savanth Sebastian, CommSec, said: “The latest reading on credit card usage really highlights the impact of the global financial crisis on the average consumer.”
“Consumers continue to embrace the new era of consumer conservatism.”
Mr Sebastian also said he expected this trend to continue over the 12 months until the economy gained a stronger foothold.
“The unemployment rate is expected to rise in the near term and concerns over job security will continue to weigh on spending decisions,” he said.
EFTPOS purchases, including cashouts, fell to $10.88 billion in June. Back in May it was $11.365 billion. This relates to a decrease of 4.3 per cent.
EFTPOS transaction values on the other hand were up 16.1 per cent in the 12 months leading to June. This is compared with an average annual rise 12.7 per cent over the preceding five years.
Even so retail sales fell by 1.4 per cent, our spending on the card increased.
Mr Sebastian said the consumer confidence increase recently seen in surveys of private sector companies suggested a modest improvement in discretionary spending over the second half of 2009. He said: “However, consumers will continue to keep their financial affairs in good order, shunning debt and using cash. Retailers will continue to have to work hard to attract consumer interest.”
According to these statistics Australians are still in love with their credit cards as the credit card usage shows the casual observer. How do you fit into this picture? Are you a big spender on the card, or do you prefer to take it a bit more slowly right now?
Source: The Australian
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Credit Card Offer Comparison
| Interest Rate (p.a.) | Balance Transfer Rate (p.a.) | Annual Fee | Cash Advance Rate (p.a.) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bankwest Breeze MasterCard | A low interest rate on everyday purchases with a low balance transfer offer | 0% for 4 months (reverts to 11.99% ) | 0% for 6 months | $59 | 21.99% |   |
Citibank Clear Platinum Card | A low interest rate offer on balance transfers and purchases | 0% for 6 months (reverts to 11.99% ) | 0% for 6 months | $49 annual fee for the first year ($99 thereafter) | 21.74% | |
St.George Vertigo | An introductory offer on balance transfer and a low annual fee | 13.24% | 2.99% for 6 months | $0 annual fee for the first year ($55 thereafter) | 21.49% | |
Virgin Australia Velocity Flyer Card | Earn 1 velocity point per $1 spent, plus an introductory offer on balance transfers | 20.99% | 2.9% for 6 months | $129 | 20.99% | |
Westpac 55 Day Credit Card | No annul fee for the first year with a low rate on balance transfers and purchases | 0% for 5 months (reverts to 19.59% ) | 0.99% for 9 months with 1% handling fee | $0 annual fee for the first year ($30 thereafter) | 21.49% | |
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