New Zealand businesses have been paying their bills in record time.
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A quarterly survey by credit research company Dun and Bradstreet showed local firms were taking an average 34.9 days to pay their bills, compared with 35.5 days in the previous quarter.
However, the vast majority - 86 percent - paid their bills within 30 days.
"The trade payments data continue to indicate that firms are generally 'cashed-up', and with low interest rates continuing, there is little incentive to delay paying creditors," said economic analyst Stephen Koukoulas.
He said the promptness of payment was a sign of a solid, growing economy, which had created something of a "virtuous circle" - with companies paying their bills quickly because they were being paid promptly.
Agricultural companies were the quickest payers, big companies were slower than small companies, and the government was the slowest of all. Companies in Christchurch were quicker than firms in Auckland.
The survey also New Zealand companies were considerably quicker than Australian firms in paying for the tenth year in a row. Across the Tasman the average time was 44.8 days.
