Fashion retailers have seen less consumer spending in the run-up to the Christmas selling season. Combined like-for-like sales from a group of 25 mass-market high street clothing chains fell by 4 per cent, 5 per cent and 4 per cent respectively over the three weeks to December 3. The figures, which account for thousands of stores and are compiled privately for the industry by accounting firm BDO Stoy Hayward, are the firmest indication yet that clothing retailers face a potentially disastrous Christmas.

The sector is experiencing an unprecedented amount of pre-Christmas discounting, something that retail experts warn will lead customers to expect money-off as a matter of course in future years. "There is more discounting than this time last year and that is changing people's mindsets," said Helen Dickinson of KPMG in The Sunday Telegraph. "Pre-Christmas discounts really are the last chance saloon. They are damaging retailers' brands," said Richard Hyman, chairman of Verdict Research.