Spending in Ireland’s hospitality sector continued to grow last month as the public splashed out in pubs and restaurants, data shows.
Spending was up 30% in hotels, 28% in pubs and 10% in restaurants, as the hospitality sector continued to reopen to include indoor dining for people who are fully vaccinated.
The busiest day for spending was July 30, the Friday after indoor dining resumed, with consumers spending more than 8 million euro an hour in shops and businesses.
According to the AIB Spend Trend, consumers spent an average of 395,000 euro an hour in pubs and restaurants throughout July.
The good weather in July, combined with the reopening and increased rollout of the vaccine, has seen consumer spending in the hospitality sector continue to rise for another month, which is positive to seeJohn Brennan
Spending on airline tickets was up 19% as people started to travel internationally again.
Spending in the retail sector was down on the previous month with clothing stores down 8%, electronic stores down 2% and homewares stores down 9%.
The border counties recorded the biggest increase in restaurant spending in July, with consumers in Donegal, Monaghan and Leitrim reporting a 15% increase on June, while those from Cavan had a 14% rise.
John Brennan, head of SME banking at AIB, said: “The good weather in July, combined with the reopening and increased rollout of the vaccine, has seen consumer spending in the hospitality sector continue to rise for another month, which is positive to see.
“Despite the return of international travel in July, consumers spent 30% more on hotels than the previous month, indicating many are still opting to stay in Ireland for their holiday this year – a positive development for businesses right across the country.”
Overall consumer spending continued to rise in July, up 1% on June.
Card usage continued to rise with chip and pin up 1%, contactless up 2% and digital wallet payments up 6%.
E-commerce spending was down almost 1% on June as people spent more money in stores.
The quietest day for consumer spending in July was Sunday 18.
On Monday 26, when indoor hospitality reopened, consumers spent more than 6 million euro an hour throughout the day in shops and businesses.
Data was compiled from AIB debit and credit card spending from more than 56 million transactions between July 1 and 31.
To account for the difference in the number of days in each month the AIB Spend Trend looks at average daily spending instead of monthly totals, providing an accurate reflection of consumer habits.