2nd Oct 2013 06:55
LONDON (Alliance News) - Tesco PLC Wednesday reported a huge drop in profits for the first half of the year, while supermarket rival J Sainsbury PLC said total sales in the first half of the year were up 5%.
J Sainsbury said that total sales in the second quarter of the year grew by 5%, and by 2.1% on a like-for-like basis. It reported first-half total sales growth of 4.4%.
It said that its online business grew over 15% in the second quarter and is now worth over GBP1 billion in annual sales.
J Sainsbury said that it opened 31 convenience stores, and five new supermarkets in the second quarter, and also launched 'mobile by Sainsbury's'- a joint venture with Vodafone.
The supermarket chain also said its own brand products, including its Taste the Difference range, is growing at more than twice the rate of branded goods.
Meanwhile, Tesco continues to face challenges both at home and abroad, as it reported a 23% fall in first half profits to GBP1.4 billion, from GBP1.8 billion a year earlier.
Tesco said that group sales including VAT were up 0.5%, and excluding petrol were up 0.9% in the first half of the year, on a constant exchange-rate basis.
It said that improvements in the UK business will be offset slightly by a weaker-than-expected performance in Europe, for its full-year results. However, Tesco said that it expects an improved performance from Europe in the second half of the year.
Tesco also confirmed that it is to inject GBP345 million in its joint venture with state-owned China Resources Enterprise.
By Rowena Harris-Doughty; [email protected]; @rharrisdoughty
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