Australians appear to have taken a sensible approach to their household budgets during the global recession, using debit cards rather than running up debt on credit cards.

The Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) annual report on the payments system was tabled in parliament on Wednesday.

It showed that while credit card transactions had risen 3.8 per cent in 2008/09 compared to the previous financial year, debit card transaction surged 14.7 per cent.

It said this was partly due to the economic slowdown over the past year.

“There is some evidence that consumers have taken an increasingly cautious approach to debt and have therefore favoured the use of debit cards over credit cards,” the central bank said.

It said this was evident when the federal government’s stimulus payments were made.

“These tended to boost debit card spending and cash withdrawals more than credit card spending. In addition, credit card repayments have typically exceeded credit card transactions since the end of last year, sometimes by large amounts,” it said.

Debit card transactions accounted for 31.8 per cent of the total number of non-cash retail payment transactions in 2008/09, while credit cards accounted for 24.4 per cent.

Treasurer Wayne Swan welcomed this positive development.

“I’ve always said the vast majority of Australian families take a very sensible approach to their household budgets and it’s good to see this has been happening throughout the global recession,” Mr Swan said in a brief statement.

AAP