The data for the month of September showed retail sales were steady at 0.0% when compared with August, which saw a 0.2% downturn and a 0.4% uptick in July.

However, year-on-year sales in September increased 3.4% in terms of value and 3.1% in terms of quantity, with growth across all sectors except for department stores and household goods.

In terms of rolling three-month figures, the end of summer saw moderate growth of 0.6% up to September compared with the previous three months, where all sectors within non-food reported declines.