The latest supermarket share figures show that SuperValu remains Ireland's largest grocery retailer as Christmas approaches.

The figures from Kantar Worldpanel put Tesco in second place, with a 24.1% share of grocery sales.

While value sales may have dipped, there has been growth in the number of items shoppers are picking up on each trip.

The reduction in value sales is linked to the fact that these items are at a lower price point than last year, leading to a dip in the retailer's value share of the grocery market.

Dunnes' sales continue to grow, with an increase of 3.6% this period to cap off a strong year. It has managed to encourage shoppers to spend more per trip, with its market share growing to 23.8%.

Source: Kantar Worldpanel

Elsewhere, Lidl continues to post the strongest growth with sales increasing by 10.6% - as 37,000 more shoppers visited the retailer compared with the same time last year.

Dublin has proved a particularly strong region for Lidl - with shopper numbers in the nation's capital increasing by 10% this quarter.

While Aldi's performance remains ahead of the overall market, with sales growth of 2.6% and market share holding at 8.4%.

David Berry, director at Kantar Worldpanel, says: "While the big Christmas shop has yet to take place there are signs that shoppers may have begun their preparations for the festive season earlier this year".

"Confectionery, crisps and snacks have all seen double digit growth in shopper spend when compared with last year, helping to increase overall grocery sales by 2.5%".

"Such strong growth is an early indicator that Ireland's retailers could be in for a bumper Christmas, and we're sure to see grocers competing eagerly for the biggest slice of festive sales", he added.

Grocery market inflation stands at 1.3% for the 12 week period ending December 6th, in line with last period.