Retail sales grew at their fastest rate for four years in January as a bumper discount season made up in part for a mixed picture for retailers over Christmas.

According to the UK retail sales monitor by KPMG and the British Retail Consortium (BRC) growth in sales was driven by a big increase in demand for furniture.

Stripping out the effect of new shop openings, sales increased 3.9 per cent in January versus 12 months before. Total sales were up 5.4 per cent in the same timeframe.

It was the fastest growth since March 2010 and analysts said it was driven by a pick-up in the housing market and subsequent interest in household goods such as furniture.

“These figures mark a strong start to the year for retailers. Most will take much from the positives and see genuine light at the end of the tunnel,” said David McCorquodale, head of retail at KPMG.

“However, behind the scenes some have had to discount heavily to secure these sales and will now be counting the cost of this strategy. Others have genuinely beaten expectations.”