Retail boost to benefit graduates - graduate jobs

Graduates could be set to benefit from the highest levels of retailer optimism in more than six years thanks to a boost from the World Cup and the sunnier weather, the CBI has said.

Optimism has reached its best level since June 2004 with a 45% balance of retailers expecting higher sales in August, the business group's distributive trades survey revealed.

The confidence boost could prove to be good news for graduates who are considering entering the retail jobs market.

Soaring sales in July may have contributed to the increased expectations with a 33% balance reporting stronger volumes - the best result since April 2007. And as sales of clothing and footwear lead the way it could prove to be a good time for graduates interested in retail roles to send out applications.

Early discounts have boosted the high street while wealthy Middle Eastern shoppers are likely to boost London takings in the weeks before the Ramadan festival begins on August 11. The survey measured sales between June 23 and July 14, and covered 131 companies. It comes after official figures for June's retail volumes also showed a higher than expected 0.7% rise over the month.

The CBI's head of economic analysis Lai Wah Co said the optimism among retailers was "promising" but added: "We still expect the recovery in overall consumer spending to be fairly restrained, however, given concerns about the impact of public spending cuts and weak prospects for real take-home pay in the coming year."