Business this Christmas 'on same lines as last year's'

Most businessmen interviewed for a business survey by the GRTU, Association of Retailers and Traders reported that sales this Christmas season were very much on the same lines as last year's.

The highest percentage of those interviewed sell television sets and hi-fi appliances, jewellery, footwear, wearing apparel and gifts.

The GRTU said that although only 10 per cent of businesses reported good sales, 85 per cent said sales were not bad and five per cent said sales were bad.

Ten per cent of businesses reported better sales than last year, five per cent worse and 85 per cent reported the same amount of sales.

Ten per cent said they did better than expected, 10 per cent said they did worse and 80 per cent said their sales were what they expected.

Most businesses, 90 per cent, said they would be having a sale.

According to a survey by the National Statistics Office last week, the first of its kind, 2.3 million gifts, worth more than Lm20.3 million, were expected to be exchanged this Christmas.

It had found that clothes and footwear, toys and soft-toys, cakes and sweets, wines and spirits, cash donations, books, jewellery and interior decorations are the most popular presents that would be given.