Retail sales in Ireland declined both annually and monthly in December, provisional data published by the Central Statistics Office showed on Wednesday.
Retail sales fell 0.1% on-year in December, compared to the 2.5% growth the CSO had reported a month ago for November.
The best annual growth in retail sales was in motor trades, up 7.8%, followed by electrical goods, up 2.4%, and non-specialised stores including supermarkets, which were up 0.5%.
The worst annual declines in December were in books, newspaper and stationery, which fell 9.4%, followed by clothing, footwear and textiles, which were 4.4% lower, and hardware, paints and glass, which fell 3.4%.
On a monthly basis, Irish retail sales fell 0.4% in December after a 0.5% rise in November.
The strongest monthly rise was in motor trades, up 2.5%, followed by electrical goods, up 2.0%, food, beverages and tobacco at specialised stores which climbed 1.7% and clothing, footwear and textiles, up 1.6%.
The worst monthly declines in December were books, newspaper & stationery, down 9.0%, followed by fuel, down 2.6%; hardware, paints and glass, down 2.5%; bar, down 2.1%; and other retail sales, down 1.3%.
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