Credit card billings rose in December, as shoppers put Christmas presents on the plastic.
Reserve Bank data shows total billings rose a seasonally adjusted 0.9% in December, after a 4.2% drop in November.
Billings were almost 6% higher than a year earlier, from an annual gain of 3% in November.
Data released last week showed electronic card spending fell 0.3% in December, the second consecutive monthly decline.