€4bn spend will see the tills ring out for Christmas

The tills are set to ring out this Christmas, with shoppers expected to splash close to €4bn this month — the best festive spend in five years.

Retail Ireland will publish details of its Retail Christmas Monitor today showing that, thanks to rising employment, increased disposable income, and rising consumer confidence, retailers are on course to record their best Christmas season since 2009.

The monitor, which tracks key trends across the economy and the retail sector, predicts €3.96bn will be spent in shops this month — up from €3.88bn last year.