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.