Open every paper or watch every bulletin and it's grim.

But the message that we're all doomed unless we ditch the car and switch off the lights hasn't got through to the Kent shopper.

Latest figures show the county's spenders are out in force, and blowing the fuel budget on ice cream makers and iPods.

Bluewater has bucked the national trend after reporting increases in its sales.

It comes just days after the Office for National Statistics announced a record slump in retail sales nationally between May and June – the biggest fall since January, 1986.

But Andrew Parkinson, Bluewater general manager, says business is good, providing a “welcome respite” for many Kent shoppers and a “desire to indulge”.

He said “Despite tough trading conditions, Bluewater has delivered a very robust performance in the first six months of the year."

The latest figures show sales for January to June 2008 rose by 0.1 per cent and footfall by 6.9 per cent compared to the same period last year.

The categories which saw a significant rise in sales included: