Retailers' traditional post-Christmas reporting season is in full swing. Fashion group Next was one of the big winners, with sales between 1 November and 24 December jumping by 12%. Online sales jumped by a fifth at John Lewis, where internet sales comprised a third of the total. House of Fraser also performed strongly, unlike Debenhams, which issued a profit warning.
In the supermarket sector, J Sainsbury's strong Christmas allowed it to eke out marginal sales growth in the fourth quarter. The best-performing supermarkets were the premium and the discount chains. Aldi, Lidl and Waitrose have gained market share.
What the commentators said
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