Spending increase in November boosted by Black Friday
- November spending by Bank of Ireland customers up 5.6% from last year
- Black Friday spending up 6.8%, Cyber Monday down 2.7%
- Black Friday sales of electrical goods doubles compared to typical November day
Bank of Ireland customers spent more this year on Black Friday to Cyber Monday weekend, up 4.7% on last year, while spending by Bank of Ireland customers for the entire month of November was up 5.6% on last year. Black Friday itself is growing in popularity – spending by Bank of Ireland customers on that day alone was up 6.8% year-on-year – whereas Cyber Monday is having less impact, with purchases down 2.7% year-on-year. In-person sales remain popular, with about 45% of sales over the Black Friday weekend being online, roughly the same as 2023.
Discounts during the Black Friday period are now common across sectors but it is more closely associated with retailers and certain categories, particularly electrical goods and clothing. This is borne out by the November data as clothing and footwear (+30%) and electrical goods (+26%) were both up sharply from October. The day of Black Friday itself is important for electrical goods sales, with approximately double spent on that day compared to a typical November day. Clothing also got a boost, but sales are more spread out during the weeks leading up to Black Friday. Other segments which appear to get a Black Friday increase included cosmetic stores, furniture and home furnishings and department stores.
Conall Mac Coille, Chief Economist, Bank of Ireland said: “Black Friday sales, a relatively new import from the US, is now an established part of the Irish retail calendar. While Black Friday events last month did have a significant impact on some categories, such as electrical goods and clothing, the overall increase appears more broad based. This bodes well for Irish businesses as the Christmas period in November and December is a key time, and can account for over a quarter of total spending for the year. The overall increase in November spending, supported by a range of factors including high employment levels and low inflation, is a positive sign for the economy during this important Q4 period.”
November spending by Bank of Ireland customers up 5.6% from last year
Bank of Ireland customers spending on goods and services both online and in-person during November was up 6.4% on October and up 5.6% compared to November last year. In real terms, adjusted for the Consumer Price Index, November spending is up 4.6% year on year. Retail sales, in particular, got a boost, being up 14% versus October, and 3.1% year on year.
Social spending, which includes entertainment and restaurants, increased by 7.3% year on year. Retailers were supported by Black Friday sales with retail purchases by Bank of Ireland customers up 14% compared to October while services spending was down 5.3%, hit by a fall in spending on key services like accommodation and airline travel. Spending in restaurants fell last month, by 1.8% compared to October, though it was up solidly year-on-year, by 9.0%, and spending in this sector should be helped in December by the Christmas party season.
Boost for consumer spending
The increase in spending during November indicated by Bank of Ireland data bodes well for the economy during the key Q4 period. Recently released Q3 GDP data showed that personal consumption in nominal terms was up 4.2% in the year and 1.7% in real terms. There should be plenty of tailwinds for consumer spending this quarter, the domestic economy is growing, employment is at record high of 2.8m and unemployment is low at 4.1% in November. Real incomes are growing again with weekly earnings up 5.3% year-on-year in Q3 and annual CPI inflation at 1% in November. However, consumers do appear cautious as global uncertainty is subduing consumer confidence, which was 74.1 in November lower than pre-Covid levels, and the household saving ratio remains elevated at 14% in Q3.