Lidl enjoys record £1bn UK sales in run-up to Christmas

Discount grocer records 7% increase in four weeks leading up to Christmas Eve

Lidl made more than £1bn in sales in the run-up to Christmas for the first time in the three decades the discount grocer has been operating in the UK as cash-strapped shoppers cut costs.

The German-owned discounter, which is close to overtaking Morrisons to become the UK’s fifth biggest supermarket chain, said it made more than £1bn in sales in the four weeks leading up to Christmas Eve.