The accumulated retail sales up to the month of December reached the figure of $39.173 billion, an increase of 4% compared to the sales of 2022 when they reached $37.649 billion. The nominal increase is 2.1% higher than the prevailing inflation level on the Island, which stands at 1.9%. However, sales for the month of December alone increased by 4.5% to reach $3.904 billion compared to the $3.737 billion achieved in December 2022.
The category that experienced the greatest increase in December was electronic goods stores, which saw a rise of 18.9%, increasing from $62.904 million to $73.856 million during that period. Cumulatively, department store sales reached $1.382 billion, a 27.7% increase compared to the previous period, which is by far the biggest increase seen in all of the categories.
Restaurants and Bars sales, which showed a lot of dynamism between 2022 and 2023, had the second biggest increase of the year, cumulatively, they have sold $2.673 billion compared to $2.487 billion from January to December 2023, representing an increase of 7.5%. In December 2023, sector sales amounted to $248 million compared to $238 million in 2022, reflecting an increase of 4.2%.
Finally, Hardware and Home Goods Stores sales maintained the third highest growth of the year, and in December, accumulated sales reached $1.337 billion compared to $1.253 billion, showing a growth of 6.7%. In December 2023, sector sales recorded did show a decrease from $125.3 million to $103 million, representing a -17.8% change, but although this value did affect the month of December, the overall accumulative increase as mentioned was the third highest increase of the year.
The sales report shows that sales of small businesses during the month of December fell by $25.5 million to $138.2 million. Meanwhile, cumulatively, sales in this sector show a decrease of 11.7%. Sales have dropped from $1.566 billion to $1.382 billion. On the other hand, medium-sized stores experienced increases of 29.7% in December and 15.8% cumulatively. Which reflects the change in not only consumer behavior but as well the dynamics of how stores on the island are operating.
