Hundreds of bargain hunters queued through the early hours of Boxing Day to take advantage of the first day of the sales at Bradford's biggest stores.

Many city centre retailers had slashed prices by up to 75 per cent in a bid to attract shoppers amid signs of an economic slowdown fuelled by the Northern Rock crisis and the global credit crunch.

And the move appeared to be working, as retailers in Bradford's biggest indoor shopping centre reported a bumper Boxing Day, with takings up between 20 to 60 per cent on the same period last year.

Enthusiasm among the district's shoppers was highlighted yesterday when people started gathering outside the Next store, in Forster Square Retail Park, Bradford, at 2am - three hours before the store opened for its half-price sale.

Meanwhile, no fewer than 400 people queued outside Marks & Spencer at the Owlcotes centre, Pudsey, yesterday morning, and long lines of people could also been seen on Darley Street outside Bradford's M&S store.

Anita Greenshields, food manager at M&S in Bradford said: "We are offering up to 70 per cent off, which is more than we have done before."

Nicola Simpson, assistant manager of Waterstones book shop, in the Wool Exchange, Bradford, said: "People are really looking for a bargain this year. In the past, we have knocked off 50 per cent but, this year, it's up to 75 per cent, like many of the other stores. It has been quite busy."

Both WH Smith, in the Kirkgate Centre, and Internacionale, in Darley Street, were offering discounts of up to 75 per cent, while JJB, in Forster Square, went a step further by advertising discounts of up to 90 per cent.

Sharon Gill, senior department manager at Primark, in the Kirkgate Centre, said the store opened on Boxing Day and was very busy. She said: "We are definitely up on last year. I don't think people notice the credit crunch until it physically affects them, so they don't necessarily take notice of the warning signs."

Bill McCormack, operations manager at the Kirkgate Centre, said: "The bigger stores are telling me that Christmas Eve was exceptionally busy and Boxing Day was anything from 20 per cent to 60 per cent up on last year.

"Some of the stores are offering up to 90 per cent off. Pre-Christmas forecasts were doom and gloom, but it has been a good pre-Christmas and a fantastic Boxing Day. You think it can't go on forever and has to burst, but with the discounts on offer, maybe not."

The Kirkgate had extended its Boxing Day hours this year, opening from 9am to 5.30pm. But Mr McCormack said: "If they are trying to get more people into the centre of Bradford on Boxing Day, we need public transport.

"A lot of the staff were having to take taxis."

Further afield, a spokesman for the White Rose Shopping Centre, in Leeds, said the centre had enjoyed its best-ever start to the Boxing Day sales.

The experiences of retailers across the district were backed up by a new ICM poll, which revealed that economic concerns in the City are yet to filter down to consumers, with more than half saying they remain confident about their personal finances.