Marks & Spencer chairman Sir Stuart Rose had added his voice to the growing numbers of figures saying that consumer confidence is stabilising, after the retailer reported a 1.7 per cent increase in UK sales.
However, UK like for like sales were down 1.4 per cent, with same-store general merchandise sales also slipping by 2.4 per cent. Total group sales were up by 2.9 per cent during the period to June 27th.
"Consumer confidence appears to be stabilising," commented Rose. "We are pleased with the improving trend in our performance. This demonstrates that the actions we are taking are working.
"However, we remain cautious about the outlook for the remainder of this and next year and will continue to run the business accordingly."