That next season's merchandise has been selling well to the trade suggests that Burberry is playing to the right tunes

Stock market analyst

Britain's Sunday Business newspaper claimed the float could even be scrapped altogether after the global economic slowdown had weakened demand for expensive branded goods.

A Burberry spokesman declined to comment on the story.

But industry sources said the flotation was still very much on.

Strong performance

GUS announced in November that it planned to float up to 25% of the business in 18 months' time, raising up to �0.5bn to fund future acquisitions.

Burberry's upmarket men's and women's apparel and accessories are distributed through its own stores and specialty retailers throughout the world.

GUS issues results on Tuesday, when it is expected to announce a 5% rise in annual profits, to between �445m and �480m.

The group is expected to report a strong performance across all its businesses, with profit growth being driven by credit division Experian, catalogue retailer Argos, according to analysts.

Analysts said Burberry continues to perform very well despite investor concerns that the brand has become over-exposed.

They argue that management at Burberry knows that its ranges need to move on and has been planning accordingly.

"That next season's merchandise has been selling well to the trade suggests that Burberry is playing to the right tunes," one retail analyst commented.