The volume of retail sales increased by 1.7% in October 2012 when compared with September, official figures have revealed today.
The report from the Central Statistics office also stated that there was an annual increase of 3.1%.
If motor trades are excluded, the volume of retail sales increased by 1.3% in October when compared with September, an annual increase of 3.4%.
The sectors with the largest month-on-month volume increases were electrical goods (+24.8%), books, newspapers & stationery (+9.4%) and fuel (+3.6%).
The sectors with the largest monthly decreases were bars (-6%) and furniture & lighting (-3%).
The value of retail sales increased by 1.6% in October 2012 when compared with September 2012, an annual increase of 3.6%.
If motor trades are excluded, there was a monthly increase of 1.3% in the value of retail sales and an annual increase of 4%.