Shoppers spent £19.6bn during the four weeks of the festive period to 27 December, with total till sales growing by 3%, according to the latest figures from NielsenIQ (NIQ).

E-commerce as the fastest-growing channel, with an increase of 9.9%. Ocado remained the fastest-growing retailer, with sales going up by 12.8% due to the surge in online sales.

Lidl experienced a 9.4% increase in sales, making it the fastest-growing brick-and-mortar supermarket.

Sainsbury’s, Waitrose and M&S saw their sales go up by 5.7%, 5.5% and 4%, respectively.

Tesco gained market share and experienced sales growth of 3.7%, while Morrisons reported a 3.1% rise in sales. Meanwhile, Asda experienced a 6.5% decline in sales during December.

Mike Watkins, head of retailer and business insight at NielsenIQ, said: “Those retailers with sales momentum at the start of the quarter were able to extend this through to the end of December.

“Considering the external mood, music and the continued pressure on household finances, it was a Christmas of cautious celebration and a good four weeks for most food retailers.”

The data also found promotional spend grew to 27% of sales over the festive season. Hhowever, spend per visit increased year-over-year by 1.1% to £22.24.

During the period, soft drinks, snacks and confectionery sales increased by 5.7%, while fresh foods went up by 4.9%.

Frozen food sales grew by 1.2%, while beer, wine and spirits fell by 0.1%.

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