The volume of retail sales rose 0.7 per cent in February as consumers spent more on pharmaceuticals and cosmetics and in department stores.
However, car sales and spending in bars fell month-on-month suggesting consumers are still facing a cost-of-living squeeze.
The latest retail numbers from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show sales volumes across the sector were up by 1.8 per cent year-on-year.
Excluding volatile car sales, the monthly volumes were up by 1.2 per cent and 1.6 per cent in the year when compared with February 2024.
The largest monthly volume increases were recorded in pharmaceuticals, medical and cosmetic articles (+10.5 per cent), department stores (+8.2 per cent) and other retail sales (+2.2 per cent).
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Sectors showing monthly volume decreases were motor trades (-4.6 per cent), hardware, paints and glass (-3 per cent), and bars (-0.4 per cent).
The CSO said the proportion of retail sales transacted online was 5 per cent in February unchanged from the same month last year.
However these figures only cover Irish-registered retailers and exclude transactions on Amazon, the biggest online retailer.
