A senior economist yesterday told high street retailers to expect their slowest rise in sales for more than a decade next year.

Matt Sherwood, of Experian, the credit-checking and business consultancy, said that he believed that sales volumes next year would rise by just 1.3 per cent, the lowest since 1995.

“It would not take much to see retailers post their worst performance since the early 1990s,” Mr Sherwood said.

Experian reported that its research showed that the number of shoppers visiting the high street fell this month, with footfall down 1.5 per cent from a year ago and down 3.4 per cent from April.

Mr Sherwood said that although official figures since the turn of the year have suggested consumers are continuing to spend, it was clear the credit crunch was beginning to bite.

He said: “Retail sales surprised by coming in on the high side during the first three months of 2008, expanding by 1.9 per cent during the quarter.

"This was backed up by first-quarter GDP data released last week that suggested consumers have been undaunted by the credit crunch.

"But we believe this is a last dance before the party fizzles out and retail sales are expected to soften considerably over the rest of the year.”

Sir Stuart Rose, chief executive of Marks & Spencer, said last week that he feared that the slowdown could last until the end of 2009 and that the Government had been slow to wake up to the slowdown's severity.

Several big chains, such as Topps Tiles and Laura Ashley, have warned investors that conditions are becoming tougher as customers cut back.

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