Asda hurt by first sales drop in three years
ASDA chief executive Andy Clarke yesterday admitted it had been a “tough year” after the supermarket chain reported its first fall in sales for three years.
The Walmart owned chain said like-for-like sales fell 0.1 per cent in the 13 weeks to 3 January, compared to the same period a year ago, marking its first decrease since 2010.
Asda’s disappointing trading means that three of the UK’s “big four” supermarkets have now seen sales fall over the festive period, with only J Sainsbury reporting a rise.
However, Clarke insisted Asda’s recent decision to cut prices meant it was now managing to lure shoppers from discount stores such as Lidl and Aldi.
“We saw a positive move from the discounters to Asda at the end of the quarter,” Clarke said, adding that it has already widened the price gap with Tesco and moved closer to discounters Aldi and Lidl’s prices.
Asda owner Walmart also revealed a sales decline yesterday. The world’s biggest retailer said like-for-like sales fell 0.4 per cent in the quarter.