SHOPS RELYING ON SALES TO BEAT BUDGET BLUES

RETAILERS are pinning their hopes on a Boxing Day spending bonanza after businesses were battered by Labour's tax-raising Budget.

-  Giles Sheldrick

Today's shopping spree offers a final chance for millions of companies to salvage something from a bruising six months.

Many will offer knockdown prices to tempt cautious shoppers to splash the cash.

It comes after consumer confidence hit rock bottom, interest rates remain high and the high street battles with a hike in employer national insurance payments and a stagnant economy.

Economist Julian Jessop said: "The outlook for consumer spending is unusually uncertain, due in part to the fallout from the Budget.

"Incomes are still rising faster than prices for most households and there are plenty of bargains, but confidence has fallen since the summer and consumers seem reluctant to make major purchases until the prospects for jobs and interest rates are clearer." Conservative MP Greg Smith added: "Retailers, along with all other businesses, are being hammered by Labour's first Budget.

"If we want to keep our high streets, our traders need our support to keep them afloat and prevent them sinking under Labour's taxes." December is the biggest month of the year for retailers.