MARKS & Spencer boss Marc Bolland revealed an unexpected period of sales growth for the retailer yesterday as he indicated the gloom surrounding high street trade may not be as severe as some rivals have suggested.

Bolland, chief executive since May, said that while M&S was being realistic it did not believe the retail environment had “hit a wall or fallen off a cliff”.

The bullish outlook came as the bellwether retailer disclosed 0.1% growth in like for like sales in the 13 weeks to April 2. City analysts had expected a decline of around 2.5%.

The results come amid a poor run for UK retailers – after clothing giant Next, entertainment group HMV and Currys owner Dixons Retail all reported difficult trading in the period since Christmas.

But M&S has continued its run of outperformance after like-for-like sales consistently beat expectations earlier in the financial year.

It is expected to report pre-tax profits of £709m, a 12% rise compared with the previous year, in its full-year results on May 24.

The retailer said the slowdown in sales in the fourth quarter, compared to 2.8% like-for-like growth in the third quarter, was partly down to tough comparatives a year ago.

While general merchandise sales dropped 3.4% on a same-store basis in the fourth quarter, the retailer said this was partly down to tough annual comparatives and it still managed to grow its market share by 0.3% to 11.6%.

In food, like-for-like sales were up 3.4% and market share was up 0.1% to 3.8%, driven by the chain’s promotions, such as the Dine In offer, which proved popular on Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day.