Canadians haven’t let their wallets gather any moths (Albertans aside, mostly because they’re experiencing an economic downtown due to low oil prices). Consumer spending across the country was up 5.53% for the second quarter of 2016.
That’s according to Moneris Solutions Corporation (a company that processes debit and credit payments) in its MonerisMetrics Quarterly Report.
And the steady increase is no fluke: this is the seventh consecutive quarter to report positive spending results, the company stated in a release this week.
By province, Ontario posted the largest increase in spending (8.5%), followed by Prince Edward Island (8.11%). The smallest increases were in Saskatchewan (0.99%) and Newfoundland & Labrador (2.3%).
The only province to see negative numbers was Alberta, with the economy suffering from a stagnant oil industry being one cause for the 2.9% decrease in spending. Another cause could be the Fort McMurray fires in May. The report noted that while purchases were down, charitable donations for those affected were up by 21.08%.
What’s interesting is the payment methods Canadians are choosing for their spending. The report states that there was a 7.6% increase in credit card transactions (this brings credit’s total share of purchases to 64.84%), while debit transactions only increased 1.9%.
Contactless technology appears to be taking off: the tapping of smartphones and cards increased by 95.6% compared to the same period last year. And what’s more, consumers are spending more per tap, with the average transaction size (using contactless technology) up by $7.
Featured image via Shutterstock
