25th Nov 2005 07:00
Tesco PLC25 November 2005 TESCO PLC THIRD QUARTER TRADING STATEMENT STRONG SALES IN A SLOWER MARKET Group sales increased by 13.9% during the third quarter, driven by growth fromall four parts of our strategy. The core UK business has delivered anotherstrong performance against tougher comparatives; in non-food, sales and marketshare have increased; our international operations have made good progress andour retailing services businesses have continued to attract new customers. UK sales grew by 11.6% in the 14 weeks to 19 November 2005, with like-for-likegrowth of 7.9% and 3.7% from net new stores. Like-for-like sales growth in thequarter, excluding petrol, was 5.5%. Inflation overall was 0.5% but excludingpetrol, our stores saw deflation of 1.6% as we invested in lowering prices forcustomers. Non-food sales continued to see double-digit sales growth in theperiod. International sales in the third quarter increased by 23.3% at actual exchangerates and by 16.0% at constant rates. We are on track to open almost 150 storeswith a total of nearly 3.5 million square feet of sales area in Internationalduring the second half this year, representing our largest ever openingprogramme overseas. We have opened 25 stores in eight countries in the last fourweeks alone, including our first store in Guangzhou, southern China. Our next trading update will be on 17 January 2006 and will cover the Christmasand New Year period. Contacts: Investor Relations: Steve Webb 01992 644 800Press: Jonathan Church 01992 644 645 Angus Maitland 020 7379 5151 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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