Irish consumers are reining in their spending, according to latest retail figures showing the volume of retail sales rose modestly in June.
The retail sales index prepared by the Central Statistics Office shows that the volume of sales - which excludes price effects - rose by 2.9 per cent in June 2003 compared to June 2002.
On a three-month basis, which gives a more stable indication of recent underlying trends, from April to June sales volumes rose by only 0.1 per cent compared to the previous three months.
May is the latest month for which final detailed sectoral figures are available. The three-month March 2003-May 2003 volume figures show the largest increases in sales were in books and newspapers, up 1.2 per cent.
The motor trade appears to be the worst hit by the downturn. Motor sales fell by 7 per cent in the three months to the end of May, compared to the same period last year.
The figures are in stark contrast to the double-digit increases in retail sales recorded by shops at the height of the boom in the late 1990s.