MonerisMetrics Quarterly Report Q12016 (CNW Group/Moneris Solutions)
Consumer spending in Canada grew 6.24% in the first quarter of 2016 compared to the same period last year, according to a report by Moneris Solutions Corporation.
“I would sum it up as a growth-upon-growth story, so we continue to see growth in consumer spending across the country, unfortunately with the exception of Alberta, where we’ve seen two quarters of decline,” said Jeff Guthrie, chief relationship officer at Moneris. “But, for the rest of the country, it’s really a good news story. It’s the sixth consecutive quarter of growth, which shows consumers are out spending.”
The report, which measures credit and debit card spending, found Nova Scotia had the largest spending increase (11.65%) followed by New Brunswick (10.4%). The oil-producing provinces posted growth below the national average. Spending in Alberta declined by nearly 3% and Saskatchewan saw an increase of just over 1%.
By category, the biggest increases were seen in women’s clothing (11.2%), lawn and garden supply (10.6%) and fast food (9.6%).
With the low Canadian dollar, spending on foreign cards increased 17.45% year over year. Data showed that cards from the U.S. drove the highest foreign spending volumes during the quarter.
“People are coming across to spend in Canada, so foreign card spend is up, and with the lower dollar, Canadians are staying at home and spending and getting ready for spring,” said Guthrie.
The report also found the popularity of contactless (tap and pay) continued to grow in Q1. More than 25% of all transactions were contactless, compared with 14.7% of transactions during the same period last year.
“We’re seeing increased deployment of contactless-enabled devices across the marketplace, and issuers are issuing more contactless cards,” said Guthrie.
