Retail Sales (excluding motor trades) continue to increase.

The volume of retail sales decreased by 0.5% in the month of February, with an annual increase of 1.1%.

If Motor Trades are excluded, there was an increase of 1.1% in the volume of retail sales in February 2017 when compared with January 2017 and there was an increase of 5.9% in the annual figure.

The sectors with the largest monthly volume increases were Clothing, Footwear & Textiles (4.9%), Non-Specialised Stores (4.5%) and Hardware, Paints & Glass (4.3%). The sectors with the largest month on month volume decreases were Motor Trades (-5.8%), Fuel (-3.5%) and Pharmaceuticals Medical & Cosmetic Articles (-2.8%).

There was a decrease of 0.3% in the value of retail sales in February 2017 when compared with January 2017 and there was an annual decrease of 0.9% when compared with February 2016. If Motor Trades are excluded, there was an increase of 1.2% in the value of retail sales and an annual increase of 3.3%.

CSO Reports