Indoor dining lifts August spending
Spending in the early part of August received a boost from the reopening of indoor dining, figures from the Central Bank indicate.
The bank’s statistics on credit and debit cards show that spending on restaurants and dining increased by 12%, or €21 million, in the two weeks to 9 August, compared with the previous fortnight.
This helped spending in the first nine days of August to increase by 13.5% compared with the same period last year.
Total spending in the week to Sunday, 8 August decreased by 6.8%, or €118 million, when compared with the previous week. Spending on groceries was lower, but the accommodation sector increased by 2.5%.