Album sales climbed 11.8% to reach 2,175,767. Their highest level for three weeks, it nevertheless leaves them far behind same week sales of 2,696,025 in 2006 and 2,832,250 in 2005. The last time sales were lower than this in the comparable week (week 43) of the year was way back in 1998, when just 1,922,363 albums were sold.

Although the arrival of The Hoosiers' debut album helped the artist album sector to a 6.9% improvement week-on-week to 1,670,932, the compilations ...