Data obtained from the Central Bank reveals an increase in April of 32.2% in card expenditure on garden and lawn provisions, amounting to €21.1 million, as individuals anticipated the approaching summer. Despite this, the card spending showed a 0.4% rise, totalling €8.2 billion. However, the quantity of card transactions fell slightly by 0.3%, achieving 213.8 million.
There was a 13.6% gain in spending at bicycle stores, amounting to €9.4 million. Even so, when compared to the values of April 2023, sales in garden and lawn supplies and bike shops saw a slight decrease of 1.6% and 0.8% respectively.
Caravan parks and campsites experienced a dramatic 85.1% increase in spending since March and a 9.1% increase when compared to April 2023, totalling €12.5 million. The value of retail expenditure rose marginally by 0.3%, maintaining at €3.5 billion whereas service spending rose by 2%, reaching €3.3 billion.
Key sectors contributing to this progression include accommodation (6.6% rise), transportation (2.6% rise), healthcare (5.4% rise), and utilities (11.2% rise). Social expenditure, however, fell by 5.2% to €1.1 billion. The aggregate value of cash withdrawals dropped by 1% to just over a €1 billion.
Domestic cash withdrawals stayed beneath 1.1 billion, marking a 1.5% decline, while foreign cash withdrawal values surged by 6.4% to 67 million. The value of domestic card payments stood unwaveringly at €6.7 billion while foreign card payments rose by 1.9% to €1.4 billion.
In the domain of domestic card transactions, the value of contactless payments saw a reduction of 1.5%, totalling €2.1 billion. Mobile wallets and near field communication payments contributed €1.2 billion (57.7%) to this aggregate, resulting in a 1.7% decline compared to March figures.
The worth of point of sale transactions and non-remote payments has fallen by 0.8 per cent, now sitting under €4.1 billion. The bulk of this sum, precisely €3.7 billion, is attributable to domestically made payments, which saw a 1.1 per cent reduction from March, while the balance of €400 million arises from non-domestic transactions. Conversely, the worth of card payments made online or remotely saw a 1.6 per cent boost, hitting €4.1 billion, thereby matching the level of point of sale payments. Furthermore, domestic transactions carried out online tipped the scales at €3.1 billion after seeing a 1.5 per cent rise whilst online payments made outside of the country also saw growth, rising by 1.8 per cent to reach €1 billion in value.