5 February 2013 Last updated at 02:00 ET

BRC: UK retail sales rise in January

BRC director general Helen Dickinson: Although these results are encouraging, it's still tough"

The number of UK retail sales grew last month, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

The industry body said like-for-like retail sales in January were up 1.9% compared with the same time last year.

That is the largest year-on-year rise since December 2011.

It said sales were boosted by the popularity of tablet computers and smart phones, and special offers also attracted shoppers.

The Director General of the BRC, Helen Dickinson said "recovering consumer confidence" added up to "a more successful January than we saw last year".

The positive news for the high street follows a difficult January for retailers, with HMV, Blockbusters and Jessops all entering administration.