This article titled “Burberry sales jump thanks to Chinese boom” was written by Graeme Wearden, for guardian.co.uk on Tuesday 18th January 2011 09.50 UTC

Burberry has smashed City forecasts thanks to the Chinese retail boom and growing demand for luxury goods among its wealthy client base.

Like-for-like sales across Burberry’s stores around the world jumped by 14% in the last three months of 2010. Burberry performed particularly well in China, where comparable sales leapt by more than 30%.

The company – synonymous with expensive handbags, trenchcoats and the “Burberry check” – predicted that its profits for the current financial year would be at the top end of analysts’ forecasts. This sent its shares rallying by almost 4% to the top of the FTSE 100 leaderboard.

Burberry’s strong sales figures suggest that the luxury goods market is profiting as richer customers regain their taste for indulgence. It also underlines the importance of emerging markets such as China, where Burberry recently bought out its trading partner to take closer control of operations.

Yesterday luxury goods giant Richemont reported that its sales grew by around a third in the last quarter, fuelled by strong demand in Asia. And ING has predicted that the luxury watch market will boom in 2011, with India a significant driver.

Burberry said that outerwear and large leather goods contributed around half of its sales growth. Total sales across the company were up by 30% between October and December, with shoes, small leather goods, men’s accessories and its Prorsum range all selling particularly well.

Chief executive Angela Ahrendts said that “ongoing initiatives in retail, digital, product development and new markets underpin our confidence in the future”.

Kate Calvert, retail analyst at Seymour Pierce, said Burberry was expected to grow twice as fast as its peers.

“Burberry not only has significant geographical, product mix and leverage opportunities but operates in a market with long-term growth credentials geared in to global growth,” Calvert said.

guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010

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