Death of the high street: special report

It’s the UK’s biggest supermarket chain – but £4bn has been wiped of Tesco’s market value, after it reported “dire” Christmas sales. So what’s gone wrong? Sarah Smith takes a look.

“Dazzling” sales in the week before Christmas, yet forecasts remain gloomy as plunging profits threaten to close more shops. Channel 4 News asks: what is the future of the British high street?

The camping and outdoor chain Blacks has gone into administration – the latest retailer brought down by the economic downturn. Channel 4 News looks at which shops are facing the most pain.

The luxury car maker Bentley sells more cars to China than the UK in 2011, as Bond Street traders tell Channel 4 News that Chinese shoppers are “hugely important”.

A bumper Boxing Day and up to 12 million shoppers on the streets on Tuesday – but economists are still warning of gloom for the British economy in 2012.

An estimated four million shoppers cram the UK’s high streets for the Boxing Day sales – with spending hitting record levels. Asha Tanna reports on the battle to beat off economic gloom.

As the British high street emerges from 2011 a shadow of its former self, Channel 4 News looks at the brands gone bust, or hanging on by a thread, at the end of a difficult year.

With a huge increase in empty high street shops, retail expert Mary Portas has produced a government-backed review into how get town centres thriving again.

A third of high streets are “degenerating or failing”, according to a government commissioned review by TV retail expert Mary Portas.

As figures show the worst retail sales growth for six months, Channel 4 News looks at which towns and cities in the UK are best placed to weather the economic crisis.

Shares in Thomas Cook plunge after the holiday firm is forced to ask lenders for more money, but bosses insist it is “business as usual”.

Rolls-Royce is the poster boy for British manufacturing, but what is the future for the sector the government hopes can pull the UK out of recession? Business Correspondent Sarah Smith investigates.

The government says economic growth will come from rebalancing the British economy in favour of manufacturing. But what does Britain still make? Business Correspondent Sarah Smith investigates.

As Tesco reports its worst performance in the UK for 20 years, despite a boost in growth outside the UK, experts warn Channel 4 News there is no reason for consumers to start spending.

As department store chain TJ Hughes teeters on the brink of administration, Channel 4 News learns two other fashion retailers are under threat in the slump on the British High Street.