David Jones has posted strong full-year sales growth, navigating recent challenging conditions in the Australian market.

South African owner Woolworths Holdings has revealed that David Jones sales increased by 8.4 per cent in Australian dollar terms over the year ending June 26.

Sales in comparable stores grew by 7 per cent, with net retail space growing 3.5 per cent.

David Jones and rival department store Myer are battling it out for market share in an ever-competitive and evolving market.

In the 2016 third quarter (13 weeks to April 23), Myer posted 2.1 per cent sales growth, up 3.4 per cent on a comparable store basis.

The results come following recent difficult economic conditions for retailers, amid political uncertainty in the lead up to the federal election.

ANZ-Roy Morgan Australian Consumer Confidence figures released this week revealed a decline for the third week in a row, with “uncertainty related to the election result and lingering concerns over the global outlook” attributed as likely remaining key factors behind the recent decline.

Australian Bureau of Statistics figures released at the beginning of the month revealed that retail sales improved marginally in May, however were still comparatively weak, with retail turnover rising 0.2 per cent, following a 0.1 per cent rise in April.