(Reuters) - U.S. discount retailer Dollar General Corp (DG.N) posted higher holiday-quarter earnings and sales as more shoppers came in and spent more per visit. Earnings rose to $292.5 million, or 85 cents per share, in the fourth quarter ended on February 3 from $222.5 million, or 64 cents per share, a year earlier. Sales rose 20.1 percent to $4.19 billion. Sales at stores open at least a year rose 6.5 percent on more shopper traffic and beat the company's forecast of a 5 percent increase. Dollar General expects more gains this year. It forecast same-store sales would rise 3 percent to 5 percent, with earnings per share of $2.65 to $2.75, compared with $2.22 last year. The company has more than 9,800 U.S. stores and plans to open another 625 this year. Dollar General packs a variety of general merchandise into small stores and prices most of it below $10.

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