Georgia-based payment processing firm First Data revealed that dollar volume growth fell from a 12-month high in July to 7.3 percent in August when it released its latest SpendTrend analysis on September 11. This figure was down from the 7.7 percent growth observed in its July report.
The slower growth was primarily driven by a decline in year-over-year gas prices, according to First Data. The report suggested that lower gas prices buoyed spending in other areas, but that these increases were not enough to bolster the overall index.
“Consumer spending growth continued its positive momentum into August largely due to strong back-to-school sales and the sales tax holidays,” Krish Mantripragada, First Data’s senior vice president of information and analytics solutions, said in a September 11 statement.
August’s temperate weather was also named as a cause for the strong spending. As the High Plains Regional Climate Center, an organization that works with regional and federal climate centers, illustrated in this graphic, the weather remained cooler than normal in many areas of the U.S. into August, meaning milder, more pleasant temperatures for many shoppers.
In this PYMNTS.com Data Point, we’ll break down the findings to reveal how consumers spent their money in August.
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Dollar Volume Growth By Payment Method
Credit dollar volume growth saw the biggest month-over-month increase in August, rising to 8.3 percent. Signature debit, PIN debit and prepaid payment methods also saw positive dollar volume growth, but these metrics fell to 6.9 percent, 6.1 percent and 2.9 percent, respectively, from higher totals highs in July.
Check dollar volume growth decreased to -5.5 percent, dropping from the -3.4 percent in July.
Average Ticket Growth
The report indicated that average ticket growth fell to 0.8 percent in August, down from the 1.1 percent seen in First Data’s previous SpendTrend report. This decline was driven by a drop in gas station average ticket growth, which saw growth of -3.5 percent.
By comparison, average retail ticket growth rose to 1.7 percent, from the 1.0 percent uncovered in last month’s survey. First Data attributed this finding to the fact that retailers issued fewer deals and discounts in August.
Strong Retail Growth
SpendTrend observed retail dollar volume growth – the size of individual sales at retail merchants – at 5.5 percent for the month, up from the 4.4 percent growth seen in July. This uptick was attributed to back-to-school shopping. For example, dollar volume growth at general merchandise stores and clothing stores saw a spike in growth of 4 percent and 2.7 percent, respectively.
For the full report, click here.
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