The latest retail figures for November show a strong month, boosted by ‘Black Friday’. Retail sales excluding motors were up a massive 3.1% month-on-month (mom) and 4.9% year-on-year (yoy). This compares to a 3.8% annual gain in October.
Electrical goods and cosmetics performed best but at a price of heavy discounting – retail prices were down 1.2% on the month and 2.5% on last year.
Early evidence from industry body Retail Ireland suggests that December sales were slightly softer than expectations but still well up on December 2015. So consumer spending should post another robust gain in the fourth quarter.
According to Davy Stockbrokers, a recent phenomenon in the November data has been the boost in sales volumes from the marketing around ‘Black Friday’. In November 2015, retail sales (ex-motors) were up 2.1% mom, and this year’s bounce has been even more pronounced. The period is also marked by heavy discounting – retail prices were down 1.2% on the month and annual deflation accelerated to 2.5% from 1.9% in October."
Source: www.businessworld.ie
