A tale of two halves when it comes to the latest credit data

Centrix figures show over July, the number of people behind on their payments fell month-on-month, by nine-thousand, to 456- thousand.

But Chief Operating Officer Monika Lacey says the downside of people managing their financial situation well, is that they're not out spending money on clothes or food.

She says as a result business are still doing it tough.

Lacey says liquidations are up 19 percent year on year, largely as a result of consumers pulling back on spending.