Our photographer NEIL CROSS was out and about on the streets of Preston to see how the day went.
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Figures from Barclaycard Payments show credit card sales were lower than on Black Friday despite the reopening, as online sales slumped in the face of shops opening their doors again.
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It reported a 16.9% decrease in the volume of payments compared to the same period on Black Friday
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Rob Cameron, chief executive of Barclaycard Payments, said: “With physical stores only having been open for a few hours, it’s not surprising that today is tracking behind Black Friday in transactions.
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“We expect the gap between Black Friday and ‘Black Wednesday’ to narrow as we continue through the day, as more shoppers hit the high streets – especially with many retailers extending their opening hours to take advantage of the new social distancing guidelines.”