Spending on apparel across New Zealand has fallen by 4.2 per cent in June 2026 compared to June 2025, from NZ$318 million to NZ$305 million.
This is according to actual electronic card transaction data from Stats NZ, which also shows a dramatic month-on-month fall in spending by nearly NZ$30 million.
The slip in apparel has hampered growth in total core retail spending – excluding cars, fuel and services – which grew by just 0.4 per cent to NZ$5.78 billion.
Hospitality spending also suffered, dropping 1.4 per cent year-on-year, with durables (white goods, furniture, etc) reporting no growth at all on last year. The saving grace was consumables, where spending grew by 2 per cent.
It appears that much of the spending has gone into fuel, with that category reporting double-digit YoY growth over the last four months, following a raft of modest spending drops over the last year. In June, fuel spending was up 11.3 per cent YoY, lifting by around NZ$50 million to NZ$490 million
Retail NZ CEO Carolyn Young said this data from Stats NZ will not be the boost that some retailers will have hoped for.
“Retailers will have been hoping to see another rise in spending for June, with the global uncertainty looking like it was easing somewhat,” Young said.
“But other than an uptick in grocery spending, with a 2 per cent rise in consumables, shoppers continued to cut back despite those positive economic signs. Apparel again took another blow, with spending down 4.2 per cent compared to June last year – its fourth straight monthly decrease; even hospitality took a 1.4 per cent tumble despite seeing a reasonable lift in spending in May."
Young said while the one positive for core retail was an increase in grocery spending, it was still below the rate of inflation.
“Over the last week or two we have seen those global tensions erupt again with the re-closing of the Strait of Hormuz, so retailers will be bracing for shoppers to cut back on spending further, especially with Westpac’s latest consumer sentiment index showing a continuation of deep pessimism.”
NZ Institute of Economic Research’s June quarter survey of business opinion out this week found 41 per cent of firms raised their prices in the June quarter, the highest reading since September 2023, while 54 per cent said they intend to raise their prices in the September quarter.
Young said while retailers are being hit with rising costs in all directions, with spending so subdued, they may be thinking again about whether to raise prices.
“Retailers always absorb costs where they can, as they’re aware the high cost-of-living has been hitting households hard,” Young said. “While they need to ensure they are covering their costs, they also need to be able to attract customers into their stores. It’s a tough balance to strike when times are tough like this.”
However, the Reserve Bank has signaled they expect to see economic growth return in the September quarter, something Young said retailers will take some comfort from.
The data by Stats NZ also shows that the number of transactions across core retail has lifted by around 1 million to 124 million transactions year-on-year in June. This number is down month-on-month by around 9 million.