Increased Retail Spending for Greater Christchurch in Level 3

“Consumer spending by individuals and businesses accounts for 60 per cent of economic activity – how each person spends their income makes a huge difference to keeping local businesses afloat and people in jobs. The spend trickles through the community – to workers, suppliers and producers and ultimately benefits us all,” Norris said.

“Level 3 restrictions meant the growth in retail spending has been somewhat muted, but once we enter Level 2 we expect to see these pick up even more. ChristchurchNZ is already working to encourage people to support local businesses and save local jobs. Alongside this we are planning for the medium and long-term outlook.”

ChristchurchNZ’s economic planning encourages people to think about working within three horizons: respond, recovery and ultimately, repositioning the city for a stronger future.

“Consumer spending is the first and perhaps most powerful early tool we have to support businesses and keep jobs, but we’re looking at a suite of actions that will make a real difference, including creating a sustainable visitor and education economy, supporting people to move from unemployment into training and jobs and creating a distinctive city identity with a smart, resilient and equitable economy,” Norris said.

Retail spending volumes for the week ending 3 May 2020 indicated an overall decline of 40.8 per cent spending in Greater Christchurch compared to the same week last year. This is about 10 percentage points above last week’s figure (-50.7%).

Spending has picked up in all retail previously dormant retail categories, with the exception of Clothing, Footwear & Department Stores.

Supermarkets continue to exhibit increased business in dollar terms (up by around 11 per cent compared to the same week last year).

Spending patterns over time can be seen in Figure 1.

Figure 1.