There's no sign of a slowdown in retail spending, with electronic card transactions up in the last month.

Just under $5b was spent electronically in January.

That's an increase of about 5% on a year ago.

Hospitality is a leading industry, bringing in an extra $10m last month.

Spending in some sectors has fallen, most noticeably in relation to fuel purchases.

But booming tourism and record low interest rates are expected to keep retail businesses afloat.