Visa has today released its latest Irish Consumer Spending Index which measures expenditure across all payment types (cash, cheques and electronic payments).
The index signalled a renewed downturn in household expenditure in September. At -2.0% year-on-year, the fall was the second-fastest since the series began in September 2014, behind only that seen in June.
The reduction in September followed a rise of +0.6% in August. Spending has now decreased in four of the past five months. On a quarterly basis, the third quarter saw a fall in spending of -0.6% year-on-year, broadly similar to the -0.9% reduction seen in the second quarter.
Expenditure decreased across both Face-to-Face and online channels during September. Face-to-Face spending decreased for the fourth time in the past five months, and at a solid pace (-2.7% year-on-year). The reduction in eCommerce spending was more modest by comparison (-0.8%), but ended a two-month sequence of expansion.
Six of the eight monitored sectors saw spending decrease year-on-year in September, the only exceptions being Hotels, Restaurants & Bars (+4.7%) and Recreation & Culture (+2.7%.) The Clothing & Footwear sector continued to struggle, seeing a -7.0% reduction in spending. This was the sharpest decline in five years.
Household Goods expenditure decreased for the first time since the series began in September 2014 (-0.7% year-on-year), while Food & Drink (-0.7%), Transport & Communication (-1.9%) and Health & Education (-3.8%) all recorded declines in spend following rises in August.
Speaking this week, Ireland Country Manager at Visa, Philip Konopik said, "We are seeing a clear trend of a slowdown in Irish consumer spending with falls in household expenditure in four of the last five months. The only positive notes in September were growth for the Hotels, Restaurants & Bars and Recreation & Culture sectors, which is testament to the shift in shopping behaviour with people keen to spend their money on experiences, rather than material goods."
Source: www.businessworld.ie
