Retail sales rose more than expected in November as Internet shopping surged at its fastest rate in more than a year, suggesting consumer demand is still holding up in the face of a housing market slowdown.

Sales rose 0.4 per cent last month, the Office for National Statistics said, twice the rate predicted by analysts, putting them up 4.4 per cent on the year. Food stores and the non-store retailing and repair category led the charge.

The latter, which includes specialised Internet retailers like amazon.co.uk, rose by a whopping 5.9 per cent on the month – the biggest jump since August 2006 – in a sign that high street stores complaining about poor demand may simply be losing market share to online retailers.

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