Game reverses Xmas fortunes

Game, the console and computer games specialist, has pulled off a last-minute turnaround in seasonal sales.

The retailer issued a profit warning just before Christmas. But a surge in late shoppers took like-for-like sales up 12.2 per cent in the UK for the 11 months to January 4.

Game now predicts profits for the year to January 31 will be ahead of last year's record figure of£31.5 million.

In the first two weeks of Christmas trading, like-for-likes fell 4.7 per cent. But by the end of the five weeks to January 4 it notched up like-for-like growth of 3.8 per cent.