May 22 (Reuters) - Music superstar Taylor Swift's latest

album, "The Tortured Poets Department," was released just two

weeks before the end of Target's ( TGT ) quarter - and yet sales were

enough to buoy the retailer's entertainment business.

Target ( TGT ) said the category grew high-single-digits in the

latest quarter, benefiting from exclusive offers for Swift's

latest release.

Swift released the first 16 tracks of "Poets" on April 19,

and two hours later surprised fans by revealing a double album

with 15 more songs. The retailer's first quarter ended May 4.

"With an exclusive-to-Target ( TGT ) version of the album and three

exclusive CD options, this was the strongest music pre-order in

our history," Christina Hennington, Target's ( TGT ) chief growth

officer said in a post-earnings on Wednesday.

The company added that sales were elevated by improved

in-store events for the album that included Target ( TGT ) exclusive

vinyl that had bonus tracks.

Vinyl of The Tortured Poets Department + Bonus Track 'The

Manuscript' sells for $45.99, according to Target's ( TGT ) website.

Traditional album sales of this release totaled 1.91 million

in the week ending April 25 between digital download albums,

CDs, cassettes and also included 859,000 vinyl sales, Billboard

had reported citing data from Luminate.

Swift, 34, has been setting music industry milestones and

boosting local economies with The Eras Tour, which resumed in

Paris earlier this month, a phenomenon that some economists have

termed "Swiftflation."