The volume of retail sales rose by 7.2 per cent in May compared to the same month last year, according to figures released by the Central Statistics Office yesterday.

On a three-month comparison, sales in the March to May quarter were 2.7 per cent higher than in the previous three months.

The largest increase in sales volume in the February to April period, the latest period for which a detailed breakdown is available, was in the garages and filling stations sector where sales rose by 11.7 per cent.