Harvey Norman’s 16 Irish stores delivered strong growth in the 12 months ended June 30th, the company has told the Australian stock exchange.

Harvey Norman Holdings (Ireland) Ltd, which employs 800 at its 14 stores in the Republic and two in the North, bucked the trend in the troubled retail sector, its Australian parent said.

In the Republic, like-for-like sales were up 6.5 per cent in the year ended June 30th when compared to the previous 12 months. In the North like-for-like sales were up 2 per cent versus last year with a similar increase in total sales. Blaine Callard, the chief executive of Harvey Norman Ireland, said full-year audited results, due at the end of the month, will reveal more specifics in terms of sales and profits. “Our return to profit continues steadily,” he said.