JEWELLERY group Goldsmiths provided early proof that shoppers carried on spending this Christmas as it unveiled record sales figures.

The retailer said sales in its 161 stores during the four weeks to Christmas Eve were almost 11 per cent higher than in the same period a year earlier.

The group operates through the Goldsmiths, Northern Goldsmiths, Walker and Hall, and the Alfred Chilcott and Company names on the high street.

The latest figures from the privately-owned firm follow record sales performances in the past two years.

Goldsmiths' chairman and chief executive Jurek Piasecki said one-fifth of the company's stores had hit their December targets by Saturday night, and went on: "Following a steady start to the month business started to accelerate. We are absolutely delighted with this performance as we have beaten the records achieved in the previous two years."

The company said its like-for-like sales performance - which strips out the impact of opening eight new stores this year - was 9.5 per cent ahead.

Goldsmiths, which was founded in 1778, took £15.5m worth of business during the week to Sunday, with the higher price end of the market doing well.

Demand for Rolex watches and diamond jewellery was particularly strong, the company said.

The Christmas figures mean sales for the year to December 24 are up 12.3 per cent in total and by 9.9 per cent on a like-for-like basis on last year.