John Lewis, the department store chain, brought some seasonal cheer to the beleaguered high street today after revealing a 27.4 per cent surge in weekly sales, driven by its policy of matching the same prices on goods as its rivals.

The business, considered to be a bellwether of high street sentiment, reported strong trade in fashion and claimed that demand for electricals and home technology resulted in record takings.

Since before Christmas, struggling retailers have been discounting goods across the board in an attempt to attract cash-strapped consumers, forcing John Lewis to follow suit because of its policy to match rivals' prices.

In the week to January 3, John Lewis sales rose from £61.73 million in the same period last year to £78.61 million.

However, for the 23 weeks to January, 3 sales were 3.2 per cent lower than last year, with recent gains dragged down by a period of double-digit sales declines in the run up to Christmas.

Waitrose, the John Lewis Partnership's supermarket business, also reported strong growth in the week to January 3 with sales up 7 per cent to £81.23 million as the cold weather helped sales of meat and root vegetables.

The upmarket supermarket chain also said sales of party food and champagne surged, in stark contrast to Majestic Wines which yesterday revealed a fall in sales of bubbly because of tightening household budgets. Sales for the 23 weeks to January 3 are up 1.1 per cent.

Waitrose sales come a day after J Sainsbury posted a 4.5 per cent rise in sales over the festive period and serve to highlight the poor performance of Marks & Spencer over Christmas, when food sales fell 5.2 per cent.

Overall, weekly sales for the John Lewis Partnership, which includes both the department stores and supermarket chain, gained 16.1 per cent to £159.84 million.

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