THE DAILY BRIEFING SHOE SLUMP Sales at Shoe Zone dropped 4.2pc to £159.8m as the budget retailer closed loss-making stores. But profits in the year to October 1 rose 1.1pc to £10.3m.

PROFITS BOOST Builder Taylor Wimpey yesterday said profits for 2016 would be ‘at the upper end’ of expectations of between £706.4m and £755m. It made £632m in 2015. The update came a week after Persimmon saw an 8pc rise in annual revenues. Taylor Wimpey sold 13,881 new homes last year, up 4pc on the previous year, with the average selling price rising 13pc to £286,000. Shares fell 2.5pc, or 4.3p to 170.6p.

LOBSTER SUCCESS A social media promotion helped Lidl sell 40,000 lobsters in a day – for as little as £2.99. The German discounter told customers to tweet about Christmas treats to vote on which products should have their prices slashed. It sent sales soaring and helped Lidl post a 10pc rise on last year. Like its cutprice rival Aldi, Lidl did not reveal likefor-like sales figures, which are generally viewed as giving a more accurate picture of trading. Earlier this week Aldi said its sales were up 15pc.

AIRBUS RECORD Airbus exceeded its targets to deliver a record number of planes for the 14th year in a row. The aircraft manufacturer said numbers had grown 8pc to 688 last year, beating its own expectations of more than 650 planes. The firm, which supplies aircraft to British Airways, easyJet and Virgin Atlantic among others, also reported a rise in new orders to 731.

FUNDS BOOM Investors poured an extra £583m into equity funds in November – the first time in 2016 that more money was put in than taken out. The Investment Association figures show that funds with a global focus were bestsellers, followed by those invested in the US.

BEAUTY BRANDS Online shoppers helped House of Fraser shrug off High Street fears and post a 2.7pc rise in sales. The department store chain said Black Friday takings were also up 2.7pc. Make-up brands including Charlotte Tilbury, Mac and Jo Malone also helped its beauty department pull off a strong performance.

JOULES JOY Sales at fashion firm Joules surged by nearly a quarter in Christmas trading amid rising demand for its rural chic. The business, which sells country-style clothing saw sales rise 22.8pc in the seven weeks to January 8.

CASH INJECTION A group of investors has pumped £82m into peer-to-peer business lending platform Funding Circle, a move which the Government said was a ‘vote of confidence’ for the firm. It brings Funding Circle’s total investments to £300m.