West End income from tourism has soared in the period following the Brexit vote, with American and Chinese visitors the highest contributors.

Tourist spend has soared in London's West End

Tourist spend has soared in London’s West End

Overall West End sales figures rose 4.9% to £400m compared to July 2015

US visitors, who accounted for 10% of West End foreign spend, spent 44% more than they did in the previous July, while Chinese tourists, who generated 30%, spent 21% more – equating to an average of £1,410 per person.

Overall, West End sales figures rose 4.9% to £400m. Oxford Street sales surged 7.3% while Bond Street sales rocketed 11.5% and department store sales increased 8.7%.

However retailers in the West End face an average business rate increase of 80% in 2017, a tariff that could cut profits by around 25%, according to the New West End Company retail consultancy.

New West End Company chief executive Jace Tyrrell said: “Tourists looking to cash in on the weak pound have helped to alleviate, albeit on a temporary basis, some of the shockwaves that hit the economy following the Brexit vote.

“However the longer-term horizon once the process of leaving the EU gets underway looks less bright. Business rates revaluation in early 2017 will hit West End retailers’ profits hard … this will undoubtedly have a knock-on effect to jobs and investment around the UK.

“In the new post-Brexit [vote] environment the Government should reconsider the conditions that previously informed this decision and instead look to support this critical part of Britain’s economy that can make a huge contribution to the UK’s economic wellbeing in uncertain times ahead.”

The West End makes a contribution of £52bn to the economy, which outstrips that of the City of London, claims the New West End Company.