Spending on clothing and gambling jumped in October, contributing to a sharp rise in overall credit and debit card usage, the Central Bank said on Wednesday.
In its latest monthly card statistics, the regulator said total card spending jumped to €9.85 billion, up by more than 4 per cent from September and 13.5 per cent ahead of October 2024.
Domestic transactions, valued at €8.17 billion, saw “strong” growth compared to the same month last year, rising 13.8 per cent year-on-year, the Central Bank said. Non-domestic payments, meanwhile, jumped by almost 2 per cent from September and 11.9 per cent from October 2024.
On a sectoral basis, spending on social activities recorded the biggest monthly increase in transaction values, jumping by almost 7 per cent per cent month-on-month, followed by the retail sector, which saw an increase of 6.3 per cent in transaction values.
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The Central Bank said a jump in spending on clothing was a “key driver” of the increase in retail transactions.
“Irish residents spent €445.16 million on clothing during the month, representing a 9.75 per cent increase from September,” it said.
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“This spending reflects a marginal increase year-over-year, with the value spent rising by 2.63 per cent (€11.41 million) compared to October 2024.”
Clothing rental was a significant contributor to that increase, the Central Bank said, likely related to the seasonal demand for Halloween costumes.
Social spending, meanwhile, was “primarily fuelled” by a rise in spending within the entertainment subsector, which jumped by 8.3 per cent or €31.8 million in the month, according to the report.
“The main merchant contributing to the rise in entertainment spending was ‘betting/casino gambling’, which increased by 11.23 per cent (€20.28 million) from September,” the Central Bank said. “When compared to October 2024, spending has spiked by 20.12 per cent.”
Central Statistics Office figures published last week indicated that monthly retail sales fell by 0.5 per cent in October from the previous month but were 2.1 per cent higher than a year earlier.
The sectors with the highest monthly volume decreases were hardware, paints and glass, with sales down 3.5 per cent, while clothing, footwear & textiles sales fell by 1.9 per cent and motor trades were down 1.7 per cent.
