//
According to Bloomberg, the index added 8.9 points to hit 6,015.94 earlier today (April 6th 2011), having rallied by 5.1 per cent over the last fortnight. Shares in M&S climbed by 4.2 per cent to 354.5p following its latest report.
"Against a backdrop of pressured consumer finances, M&S has exceeded expectations," said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Keith Bowman. "Today's update reminds investors that M&S is still a force to be reckoned with."
Other major players in the retail sector rose on the back of the M&S data, including fashion chain Next - shares in which rose by 3.1 per cent to 2,093p - and Kingfisher, which piled on 1.2 per cent to 261.2p.
In its latest quarterly assessment published this week, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development predicted that the UK economy would grow by an annualised rate of one per cent during the second quarter.
Posted by Clive Arneil
