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Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland
# spend spend spend
Retailers are going to have their best Christmas since 2009 thanks to you
Irish households are expected to spend an extra €650 to €750 in shops this month compared to other months this year.
RETAILERS ARE EXPECTING to have their best Christmas trading period since 2009, with consumer sentiment up and shoppers ready to spend big.
It is estimated Irish households will spend an extra €650 to €750 in shops this month compared to other months of the year. A Christmas retail monitor by business group Ibec, found consumers are likely to spend €3.96 billion – up from €3.88 billion in 2013.
However it will be a cheaper Christmas for consumers as competition remains intense in the sector, keeping prices down. Goods prices are on course this month to be at their lowest level since December 2002 and downward price pressures will continue into the post-Christmas sales period.
The data comes on what is known as Cyber Monday, with tens of thousands of Irish people expected to bag some Christmas deals online.
“The Irish retail sector has had some very tough years, but there is now cause for cautious optimism,” commented Retail Ireland Director Thomas Burke today.
The next few weeks are by far the most important trading period of the year, and key indicators are pointing in the right direction. More people are at work, disposable income is rising and the Irish consumer is more positive about the future. This should translate into a really strong Christmas period for the sector. This is good news for the economy; it means more jobs and more tax revenue.
Retail Ireland’s most recent forecasts expect in the region of 35,000 extra people at work since last Christmas, and almost 96,000 more than in Christmas 2012.
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