London retail show more year-on-year gains

High Street sales in the nation’s capital have continued to buck the nationwide retail slump, with like-for-like sales climbing 5.9 per cent in February – a stark contrast to

the national year-on-year 1.8 per cent decline

seen across the UK.

The news continues the trend seen in January, with like-for-like retail sales climbing 6.5 per cent compared to the year before.

Retail Week reports that for the three months ending February 28th London’s like-for-like sales climbed 3.5 per cent compared to the year before.

Despite the recession and a poor start to February due to extreme snow, the capital’s retail sales outperformed the rest of the UK,” BRC director-general Stephen Robertson stated.

London retailers benefited as the weak pound made shopping here more attractive for overseas visitors – especially those from Eurozone countries. Half-term also helped. More families opted to stay at home this year rather than go on foreign holidays. Consumer confidence held up a bit better as London is proving slightly more resilient to recession than other parts of the UK.”