CROWDS in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne made it almost impossible to move about as some of the nation’s biggest retailers experienced record Boxing Day sales.

People began queueing outside David Jones’s stores in central Sydney before 6am, and the crowds continued to swell throughout the day.

Myer’s Pitt Street Mall store was forced to close its doors for half an hour, just after noon, to reduce the crush.

There were similar stories in Brisbane and Melbourne, while state laws kept large department stores closed across much of the rest of the country.

In Adelaide, major retailers including Target, Big W and Portmans opened their doors at midnight. In Perth, with the city shut down, shoppers were forced to cool their heels until today.

Australians are expected to spend $33 billion on a record festive- season splurge.

Huge crowds squeezed into Melbourne shopping mecca Chadstone during the first hour of trading. Police had to close the Middle Road entrance to the shopping centre carpark. Centre manager Stephen Dewaele said about 5000 shoppers were through the doors by 8am.

“Crowds have been definitely up on last year’s 100,000,” Mr Dewaele said.

Rain did not deter shoppers in Brisbane as hundreds of people lined up outside stores before opening time. Security guards were posted at the Myer city store’s escalators to ensure customers boarded in single file, after more than 60,000 customers filed through the doors.

Australian National Retailers Association chief executive Margy Osmond said sales had been strong around the country.

She said the general expectation of a reduction in activity because of high petrol prices, interest rate rises and the drought had not come to pass.

David Jones group general manager Paul Zahra said they had four times their normal staff in the Sydney stores.

“The response has been phenomenal,” he said. “We saw a million customers through our stores nationally last week alone and that is a record.” He said the stores were so packed they had been forced to introduce crowd-control measures for the safety of staff and customers.

Jennifer Marshall, 31, a Sydney school teacher, began queueing up outside DJs in Sydney shortly after six. “The crowds weren’t too bad early but by 9am they were unbearable,” she said.

Department stores have flagged Nintendo’s new Wii as the outstanding performer in the 2006 Christmas video game contest. The Wii has proved a surprise hit worldwide, attracting a new breed of players by opting for physical games that make use of its wireless remote control.

Crowds also packed cinemas yesterday as children rushed to see the homegrown animated penguin musical Happy Feet.

Business — Page 20