Despite discounting, holiday shopping failed to provide a lift to strained retailers

Reacting to the release of first estimates on retail sales volumes in December of 2009, property economist Patrick Koucheravy of property consultants CB Richard Ellis said: “The figures confirm that despite sale signs in the windows, Irish consumers were still very cautious about their spending as the holidays approached. Stripping out motor sales, the volume of retail sales fell by 0.9% from November to December, bringing the annual fall in retail sales for the year to December to 6.7%. Our own analysis of footfall on Grafton and Henry Streets in Q4 2009 indicates that the shoppers are still out in numbers, but they’re extremely cautious and spending habits are still shifting.

Considering this data and the fact that the New Year sales were crippled by the bad weather, some of the increase to the Live Register last week could be attributed to retailers having to let staff go after a difficult year as well as retail workers hired on a temporary basis for the holiday season. Although the latest consumer sentiment figures indicated renewed optimism in January, we expect 2010 to be another difficult year, as with interest rates likely to increase, discretionary spending may be even further compromised.”