Updated at 6.21pm: Total credit card receivables fell by 9.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2006 compared with the three months to December 2005, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) revealed on Tuesday. (Receivables refers to the amount of revenue contracted for but not yet received).
The decrease, amounting to $6.7 billion, was compared with a 14.6 rise in the previous quarter.
A spokesman explained that the decrease reflected the receding effect of the payment of salary taxes by credit card and the transfer of some $77 million of rescheduled receivables (representing 0.1 per cent of average receivables) outside the credit card portfolio during the quarter.
The rollover amount - which reflects the amount of borrowing by customers using credit cards - rose for the second consecutive quarter to $24.9 billion, from $24.6 billion in December 2005.
The number of credit card accounts rose by 1.2 per cent.