Irish retail sales fell by 1.6 per cent in the last three months of 2011, according to a new report from Retail Excellence Ireland.

The quarterly figures showed that sales fell by more than 6 per cent on an annual basis in October and just over 0.65 per cent in November, before rising by 1.8 per cent in December. The December increase was the first since March 2008, but the report also noted that the improvement could be attributed to record snowfalls last year.

“Quarter four 2011 proved to be a challenging period for the Irish retail industry due primarily to significantly weakened consumer sentiment,” said Retail Excellence Ireland chief executive David Fitzsimons in a statement.