UK supermarket group Sainsbury’s claimed a “record” performance over the Christmas period with a rise in like-for-like sales of 3.7%.


Total sales for third quarter were up 6.2%, while like-for-like sales, excluding new store openings, were up 3.7%, excluding fuel, in the 13 weeks to 2 January.


Excluding fuel and VAT, like-for-like sales rose by 4.2%. Weekly transactions were up one million year-on-year.


“Sainsbury’s has delivered a strong trading performance over the past 13 weeks,” said chief executive Justin King. “Our strategy of delivering great food at fair prices has resulted in a record Christmas performance, completing a strong third quarter on top of good growth last year.”


He added: “While food price inflation eased in the quarter as expected, a winning combination of more customers, enjoying even better products and prices through more stores delivered total sales growth of 6.2 per cent.”

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Customers were looking for a “more traditional Christmas”, King said, with sales of turkey and trimmings up 14% on last year.


“The business continues to perform well in what remains a challenging consumer environment. Our universal customer appeal together with our accelerated growth plans means we are well placed to make continued good progress in 2010,” the company said.


Check back later for further insight into Sainsbury’s third-quarter results.

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