Oxford Street was the busiest shopping street in Europe last year, according to research, beating rivals such as Paris’s Champs-Elysées and Madrid’s Gran Via on footfall.

Researchers at BNP Paribas Real Estate found that 72,700 people a day visited the central London retail Mecca on sample dates in September, when Covid-19 restrictions were broadly equal across the continent.

Madrid’s Gran Vía had a daily footfall of 60,800 and Milan’s Corso Vittorio Emanuele II had 54,600 visitors at the same time. The Champs-Elysées in Paris ranked fifth with 45,500 visitors.

The positive comparison will come as a boon to West End retailers, for many of whom the gradual decline of Oxford Street has been a concern for several years.

It comes as Westminster City Council prepares to implement a £150m regeneration plan for the street and its surrounding district, designed to help combat a decline across the physical retail sector over the last decade.

Gavin Redrupp, head of London Retail at BNP Paribas Real Estate, said: “We know the retail sector was hardest hit during the worst of the pandemic, but despite these challenges, Oxford Street and Regent Street remain must-visit destinations.

“As such, they both continue to attract strong brands with a compelling offer which in turn attracts strong footfall.”