Managing director James Daunt will push on with turnaround plans for Waterstones after “torrid” results reveal the company’s loss grew to £28.7 million for the year to April 2012. Speaking to the Telegraph, Daunt assured that the results from last year “sweep up a significant amount of bad news”, adding that “they’re acquisition accounts and include the before the deal when performance was very bad.

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Major video game publisher Electronic Arts has been reported a loss of $45 million loss for the final three months of 2012. The company was hit particularly hard when the game Medal of Honour: Warfighter, expected to be one of the company’s flagship releases for the year, failed to meet its predicted sales targets.

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A surge in sales of chocolate boxes helped Thorntons see in a profitable new year, but a decline in like-for-like store sales suggests the retailer isn’t out of danger yet. Commercial sales grew 26.4 per cent to £34.7 million in the 14 weeks to 12 January, against a 1.3 per cent decline in like-for-like sales across its store operations.

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It’s thought French Connection could show a loss of £7.5 million to £8 million when its full-year results are announced in March, compared with the £5 million profit it achieved for the previous year. Having already predicted that the year would end with a loss, the retailer saw its sales decrease by 2.9 per cent during the Christmas period, a fall largely attributed to the company’s decision to delay the discounting of its products.

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US retail sales rose 0.5 per cent in December, beating analysts’ estimates for the month after Americans spent more on cars and home furnishings. The United States’ Commerce Department on Tuesday announced total sales reached USD 415.7 billion in December, up 0.5 per cent from November and 4.7 per cent from the year before.

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The Co-operative Group on Tuesday announced underlying sales grew 2.2 per cent at its food stores over Christmas and New Year. The retailer, which is the UK’s fifth largest supermarket, saw like-for-like sales including VAT but excluding fuel rise 2.2 per cent in the three weeks to 5 January, compared with the same time a year ago.

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Leading menswear retailer Moss Bros Group PLC has announced that its end of year results, scheduled to be released on 22 March, are expected to exceed previous estimates. This can be attributed to their success over the Christmas period, with the company stating that its sales increased by 2.7 per cent over the last 24 weeks, and also the discounting and cost-control measures which the company had taken.

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Fortnum & Mason has reported its highest ever monthly sales in the run up to Christmas, rising 17.3 per cent in the four weeks to the end of December. A British icon and favourite with everyone from the Queen to Stephen Fry, saw strong trading across its gift lines, with Christmas tea towels and musical biscuit tins flying off the shelves.

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Shares in Marks & Spencer went through the wringer on Thursday after the retailer released its Christmas trading figures 12 hours ahead of schedule. Marks & Spencer saw more than 5 per cent, nearly £300 million taken off its value at one point on Thursday, although the department store chain was able to take control of its shares by the end of the day, closing down 2.2p at 368.8p.

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Tiffany & Co on Thursday said worldwide sales had risen just 4 per cent during the festive season, after a year of disappointing gains for the high-end jeweller. Based on Manhattan’s prestigious Fifth Avenue, Tiffany has already lowered its sales and profit forecasts three times during the current fiscal year, adding that sales growth during its most important season was below its own expectations.

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