Sainsbury's profits fall by 17.9%

by   CIJ UK
2015-11-13   10:58
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Sainsbury's, the third biggest supermarket chain in the UK, reported a 17.9-percent decrease in its half-year pre-tax profits. Like-for-like sales dropped 1.6 percent during the six-month period, with underlying sales fell for the seventh consecutive quarter at the end of September. Sainsbury's blamed the poor performance on a “particularly challenging” market, where the UK’s biggest supermarket chains are facing stiff competition from discount retailers.

“The grocery retail marketplace remains challenging,” said Sainsbury's chief executive, Mike Coupe, but the company remains “confident we are making progress.” Sainsbury's posted a pre-tax profit of GBP 308m for the 28 weeks leading to Sept. 26, the lowest it’s been since 2010. While food sales fell by almost 1 percent, clothing sales were up nearly 10 percent.