The second largest supermarket group in the UK, Sainsbury today (18 October) released a statement ahead of an analysts' meeting, which revealed that current sales and profits are in line with expectations. The announcement boosted the chain's share value by 5%, from a figure which had been under-performing sector rivals by around a fifth this year.In a meeting later today, the executive board of the company is expected to provide a progress report to investment analysts on the measures implemented to improve trading performance outlined at the end of May this year and how the business will be reinvigorated.Roger Matthews, finance director, revealed that the simultaneous strategic review of the Homebase DIY chain, which was effectively put up for sale at £1bn during August, was progressing but "likely to take a few more weeks to complete."