Sales at major department stores here continued to grow in November while those at major discount outlet chains again suffered a drop partly due to reduced operating hours, government data showed Tuesday.

The combined sales of three major department store chains gained 1 percent from a year earlier last month, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. The three department store chains are Hyundai, Lotte and Shinsegae.

November marked the second consecutive month of on-year rise for department stores after a nationwide consumer promotion campaign, dubbed Black Friday Korea, helped boost their sales 11.4 percent in the previous month.

"Their overall sales slightly increased from a year before as a sharp rise in sales of home appliances more than offset a cut in sales of clothing caused by unusually high temperatures," the ministry said in a press release.

In November, sales of home appliances at department stores spiked 15.6 percent on-year, while sales of men's clothing and miscellaneous goods slipped 5.3 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively.

The rise was also attributed to an increase in the number of people shopping at department stores.

The total number of purchases at department stores gained 2.9 percent on-year in November, while the average amount of each purchase shrank 2 percent, according to the ministry.

Sales at discount outlet chains, on the other hand, continued to move south for the second consecutive month, slipping 3.7 percent on-year last month.

The drop was partly attributed to a one-day cut in the number of working days from the same month last year, leading to a 3.3 percent on-year drop in the total number of purchases at three major discount outlet chains, while the average amount of each purchase also slipped 0.5 percent. The three discount outlet chains are E-Mart, Homeplus and Lotte Mart.

Sales at convenience stores continued to grow by a large margin, jumping 32.6 percent on-year in November.

Sales at the so-called super supermarkets, mostly run by large retailers, slipped 1.7 percent. (Yonhap)