Preliminary figures from the Central Statistics Office show that the volume of retail sales rose by 4.9% last year, faster than the 3% rate recorded in 2004. This was the fastest increase in five years. The value of sales, which takes prices into account, grew by 6.2%, compared with 4.4% in 2004.
For December, the volume of sales rose by 0.8% in the month, giving an annual increase of 5.9%. The value of sales fell by 0.2% in the month, but showed an annual rise of 6.4%.
A breakdown of the December figures showed particularly strong monthly increases in the furniture and department store categories, but bar sales dropped 0.8%.
