UK's ASOS holiday period sales growth beats forecasts

London

BRITISH online fashion retailer ASOS on Thursday beat forecasts for sales growth in the key Christmas period, underlining the ability of the online-only players to out-manoeuvre their traditional rivals.

ASOS's performance, and that of online rival Boohoo, further illustrates how the UK retail sector - and clothing in particular - is being transformed by the Internet. In stark contrast to their stellar numbers, Britain's biggest clothing retailer Marks & Spencer this month reported another fall in underlying clothing sales in the Christmas quarter, while rival Next recorded only a small rise.