Shoppers have under-performed expectations with a small rise week-on-week increase in footfall of just 2.2% and a drop of 3.7% year on year.Natasha Burton at FootFall said "The fall was not unexpected as it has followed the trend we suspected may emerge this month. The promotional incentives used by retailers over the first few weeks in November were successful and brought shoppers into stores to start their Christmas shopping early. This has made it harder to sustain levels outside of these periods and has in turn lead to quieter interim weeks, with consumers waiting to see whether any better offers are around the corner.

"The widely publicised snow predictions may have contributed to the footfall levels we have been seeing. Prospective shoppers who heeded forecasts may have postponed their shopping trips, comfortable in the knowledge that they have taken full advantage of the offers in the last few weeks and that Christmas is far enough away to fit in their shopping at a later date.

"The weekend fared particularly badly compared to 2004 at a decrease in footfall levels of 6.5%. This has confirmed that it is mid-week shopping and the attraction of late night shopping that is keeping the index as a whole at its present level. "However, it's too early to predict doom and gloom. Retailers have enticed shoppers into stores in the early Christmas run-up, and now they cannot afford to rest easy in the last crucial four shopping weeks. People have now had their last pay packet before Christmas and we expect that the retailers' efforts to entice shoppers, with special deals and offers, will pay off in the long run, as the reality of just four weeks to Christmas starts to hit home!"