(22 January 2010 – Australia) The Reserve Bank of Australia’s latest figures reveal that Australians spent over A$20 billion dollars on credit and charge cards in November last year.The spend was up 4.2 percent from A$19 billion in October, contributing to an overall increase in the annual average credit card balance of 1.7 percent compared to November 2008 when balances sat at A$3,143.
The average credit card balance was A$3,196 in November, up slightly from A$3,141 in October.
Repayments dropped by 0.6 percent in November to A$19.5 billion and total balances outstanding rose to A$46 billion from A$45 billion.
Balances accruing interest also rose, according to the data, to A$33 billion in November, up from A$32 billion in the previous month.
Total credit card repayments rose by 11.2 percent by value over the year.
Meanwhile, total EFTPOS purchases, including cash-outs, fell to A$11 billion from A$12 billion in the previous month, a decrease of 1.5 percent.