Bar and pub sales drop 7% despite wider retail sales rise

Each month this year has recorded annual volume drops in bar sales, but the figure for May is the largest decline.

Bars and pub sales fell by 6.8% over the past year, according to new data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO). 

The Retail Sales Index for May shows the drop in bar volume sales was the largest annual fall for any sector, ahead of department stores, which saw a 4.2% drop and electrical goods, which fell 2.7%.

Each month this year has recorded annual volume drops in bar sales, but the figure for May is the largest decline.

The overall retail index shows the volume of sales decreased by 0.6% in the month and increased by 1.6% over the past year.

Excluding the motor trade, the monthly volume was up by 0.5% in May and grew by 0.9% in the year.

In May, the largest annual volume growth was recorded in furniture & lighting, up 10%, hardware, up 5.4% and pharmaceuticals, medical & cosmetics up 4.2%.

Tommy Allen, Statistician in the CSO's Enterprise Statistics Division, said the value of retail sales was 0.7% lower than in April and was up by 1.7% when compared with May. 

The proportion of sales transacted online was 4.7% in May and 5% in April, compared with 4.8% in May 2024.