Oxfordshire's economic boom may soon be over, a new survey warns.

It predicts growth in the county will drop in the next four years.

Meanwhile two high street names with branches in the county have unveiled disappointing financial figures.

The report from Business Strategies forecasts output growth is likely to slow to less than two-thirds of the rate seen from 1997-2001.

It predicts a fall from 5.5 per cent average growth a year to 3.3 per cent.

Business Strategies associate director Richard Yorke said: "It reflects the effect of the global slowdown, which has hit firms right across the county, and indeed the UK.

"It would be unrealistic to expect that the previous rate of growth for the county could be maintained." The report says that although the South East is the fastest-growing region and its performance is above the national average, a sharp slowdown is now under way.

The region's growth rate this year is set to fall from 3.3 per cent to 2.5 per cent.

Allders, which has a store in Oxford's Westgate Centre, has posted pre-tax profits of £10.6m for the six months to March 31.

The figure compares with £16m for the same period last year. Like-for-like sales also fell by 0.4 per cent.

Allders chief executive Harvey Lipsith admitted it was taking longer for shoppers to warm to its new look than expected, while the sales environment had been "challenging". Shares in Woolworths, which has six Oxfordshire stores, slumped 3.5p to 46p, their lowest level since annual results were released in March, after chairman Gerald Corbett admitted the retailer was struggling to revive sales.

A "weak" performance from the group's city centre outlets was blamed for flat like-for-like sales in the past 15 weeks.