Increase in 2014 Christmas Trading Figures

This weekend is one of the busiest times for shopping as consumers count down the days until Christmas.

Retail Excellence Ireland estimate that the average household bill for the festive period will amount to 1 thousand 4 hundred euro.

Sean Murphy is the Deputy Chief Executive of Retail Excellence Ireland.

He says special offers and promotional days, meant that this year's Christmas rush began earlier than the traditional 8th of December shopping day.