Retail sales fell by 0.5% month-on-month in January and by 0.3% year-on-year, new figures from the Central Statistics Office show today.
The CSO said that excluding car sales, the monthly volume of retail sales was down by 1.5% in January from the previous month and was down 0.3% in the year when compared with January 2024.
The value of retail sales fell by 0.6% in the month and was down by 0.2% in the 12 months to January, the CSO added.
Today’s figures show the largest monthly volume decreases were recorded in the sales of pharmaceuticals, medical and cosmetic articles, which slowed by 8.6%, while Department Stores sales fell by 5%.
Sales of electrical goods were down 4.4%, while sales of hardware, paints and glass dropped by 3.5% and sales in bars fell by 2.7%.
The CSO said that sectors showing monthly volume increases were furniture and lighting sales, which were up 1%, while clothing, footwear and Textiles sales as well as books, newspapers and stationery sales moved 0.4% higher.
On an annual basis, the largest volume declines were recorded in electrical goods, which were down 8.8%, while books, newspapers and stationery fell by 4.8%.
Sales of fuel were decreased by 4.6%, while Department Stores sales eased by 3.5% and sales of pharmaceuticals, medical and cosmetic articles fell by 2.3%.
But sales in the furniture and lighting sector jumped by 7% in January compared to the same month in 2023, while other retail sales – which includes the likes carpets, games and toys, flowers, plants, seeds, fertilisers, pet food as well as jewellery – rose by 1.3% and clothing, footwear and textiles were up 0.7%.
Today’s figures also show that the proportion of retail sales transacted online from Irish registered companies was 5.6% in January, down from 6.1% in December 2024 and 5.7% in January of last year.
Article Source – Retail sales down 0.5% on a monthly basis in January – CSO – RTE
