In comparison to Canterbury, Auckland saw total card spending rise from $1,405.8 million last June to $1,483.6 million this June, a growth rate of 5.5 per cent.
Whiston said first-half year spending through the Paymark network nationwide in 2012 was 12.2 per cent higher than four years ago, at the onset of the Global Financial Crisis.
"If you compare that with the growth since 2008 in the Canterbury region, it sits at just 4.4 per cent."
Auckland/Northland's four-year growth was much higher at 14.8 per cent, and Wellington saw growth of 9.3 per cent since 2008.
"This suggests that there's still a way to go for the region to catch up, and after visiting Christchurch last week and speaking to several business people, there are still some sectors doing it tough," Whiston said.
Paymark figures also showed that across the nation, non-fuel spending increased for the third consecutive month once seasonal factors were taken into account.
Whiston said this was no doubt in part due to the lower petrol prices over the month.
Many parts of the hospitality industry saw accelerated spending in June, with cafes and restaurants reporting an annual growth of 9.3 per cent.
Clothing shops also had high annual growth of 13 per cent.
Many building related merchants again reported higher spending, with home decorating and hardware stores up 7.2 per cent.
Annual growth among travel companies was at 2 per cent.
Nationwide, the number of card transactions in June was 4.5 per cent higher than a year ago, with credit card transactions (up 6.6 per cent) continuing to grow faster than debit cards (up 3.9 per cent).
Paymark processes about 75 per cent of electronic transactions in the country.
