Christmas spending this year is predicted to provide a boost to retailers as the end of the year approaches, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).
Research by the BRC has forecast that 2007 Christmas-related shopping will be worth £12 billion to retailers, which is a five per cent rise on last year's holiday season expenditure.
Food, drink and paraphernalia related to Christmas is also anticipated by the BRC to equal around £1.07 billion, which is a four per cent increase on 2006.
Richard Dodd, head of media and campaigns for the BRC, said that the expected increase comes at the right time, as these months represent "the crucial time of the year" for retailers.
"Some retailers do 60 per cent of their business between November and January," he explained.
He added that "like-for-like growth will probably be around three per cent or slightly less" without inflation factored in this year.
