Shoppers spend as petrol prices fall

Falling petrol prices and talk of an interest rate cut led to a big jump in retail sales in the five days leading up to Christmas.

Sales were 13 percent higher than for the same period a year ago, a national survey found.

The BDO Australian Retail Index also shows shoppers spent up big in the last weekend before Christmas yesterday.

"Falling petrol prices, very low interest rates and talk of a rate cut are giving consumers a lot of confidence to go out there and spend over the Christmas period," BDO National Retail Lead Partner Simon Scalzo said.

"We are seeing a significant increase in sales from retailers across Australia."

This boded well for the annual Boxing Day sales, with the sector expecting receipts to hit $2.1 billion, eclipsing last year's $1.9 billion.