New figures from the Central Statistics Office show that retail sales grew by 0.5% month-on-month in September to stand 0.2% higher than a year earlier.
Excluding volatile car sales, retail sales volumes were up 0.7% on the month and 0.5% year-on-year.
Today's CSO figures show the sectors with the highest monthly volume increases included Electrical Goods, with sales in the sector up by 6.1%, and Books, Newspapers & Stationery sales rose by 4.6%. Furniture & Lighting and Hardware, Paints & Glass sales were both 1.9% higher.
But monthly volume decreases were recorded in Pharmaceuticals, Medical & Cosmetic Articles, with sales there down by 2.6%, while sales of Food, Beverages & Tobacco in Specialised Stores dipped by 1.1%.
On an annual basis, the sectors showing the highest volume growth in September were Books, Newspapers & Stationery, with sales jumping by 8.7%, while Clothing, Footwear & Textiles grew by 8%, Department Stores sales rose 5.6%, Hardware, Paints & Glass sales increased by 4.5% and Furniture & Lighting sales were up 4%.
Annual volume declines were recorded in Bars, with sales down 7.4%, while Food, Beverages & Tobacco (Specialised Stores) sales fell by 6.5% and Motor Trades slowed by 3.5%.
Today's CSO figures also show that the value of retail sales was 0.2% higher in September than in August, but was down by 0.4% when compared with September of last year.
Meanwhile, the proportion of Retail Sales transacted online (from Irish registered companies) was 5.2% in September and 4.7% in August 2024, compared with 4.9% in September last year.
