Spending remains constrained in Hawke's Bay according to electronic transactions processor Paymark.
The volume was up just 0.6 per cent up on a year ago, compared to a 2.7 per cent increase in March.
Nationally the company's network handled 74.8 million electronic transactions during April, which was 5.3 per cent up onlast year.
The volume in Canterbury was down 2.1 per cent on a year ago, which is an improvement from a 6.4 per cent fall in February and a 11.9 per cent fall in March.
Business was disrupted by the magnitude 6.3 earthquake in Canterbury on February 22.
Paymark said the improvement nationally was due to the pick-up in Canterbury's spending as well as growth of sales in the clothing and footwear sectors.
The improvement reflected the change of seasons with people ensuring they were prepared for winter.
Regions with the fastest annual spending growth were South Canterbury, Southland and Auckland/Northland.
