Department store Debenhams saw shares rise nearly 10 per cent in early trading as the group announced encouraging results for the Christmas trading period.

The group's share price was up by 5.30p to 62.20p at 10.09am.

Debenhams like-for-like sales rose by 1.4 per cent, including value added tax (VAT), for the 18 weeks to 7 January 2012 and level with last year excluding VAT.

The online business, which Debenhams described as a 'key component' of its 'multi-channel' offering, saw like-for-like sales increase by 34.8 per cent.

In a statement, the group said the unseasonably warm weather in October and November and low consumer confidence had impacted upon sales but that December trading was notably stronger, with like-for-like sales up 6.5 per cent for the five weeks to the end of 2011.

Chief executive Michael Sharp confirmed that record sales were achieved in the final week before Christmas.

'Looking forward, we are cautious about the strength of the economy and its impact on consumer behaviour over the remainder of the financial year,' he said.

'We will continue to manage the business tightly with an ongoing emphasis on cost and margin management. 

'We are confident that the design, quality and value offered by our spring/summer 2012 product ranges will find favour with customers and expect to see some benefit from lower input prices in the second half of the year,' Sharp added.