Unibail-Radamaco-Westfield which owns the Westfield shopping-centres reported a 14% drop in sales in the first half of the year as well as a slump in rent collection of 67%. The firm’s two UK based locations were the worst hit, with revenue down 27.5% in the same period. Its US based flagship malls saw sales down 15.3%.

The company announced that it was severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic which forced the shopping-centres to close for an average of 67 days. It said that footfall in the UK centres was up to 50% of 2019 levels, although this lags behind Europe where 80-90% footfall has been recorded. Unibail-Radamaco-Westfield said that it believed further easing of restrictions such as cinemas and gyms reopening as well as the gradual return of office work would have a positive impact on trading.