UK grocery retailer Tesco recorded an 8.2% sales rise in third-quarter sales today (7 December), as growth was driven by its international operations.
For the quarter ended 27 November, international sales were up 15.7%, as the UK’s largest retailer said its overseas businesses matured, supported by an “improving global economy”.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
In the UK, sales were up 5%, including VAT and excluding petrol, for the quarter.
Meanwhile, like-for-like sales improved to 1.5%, including VAT and excluding petrol. Tesco said it recorded the improvement despite inflation staying low “for much of the quarter”. The company also cited a “strengthening performance as we exited the quarter” from its UK business.
Tesco recorded strong growth from its Asian operations, with sales up 23.4%. Like-for-like sales rose 4.3%, slowing slightly on the 5% recorded in the second quarter.
The company saw sales grow 38.5% in the US, where like-for-like sales reached 9.8%, which it attributed to increased customer numbers.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataCEO Terry Leahy said: “As the global economic recovery gathers pace, our broad-based strategy, combined with our ongoing focus on productivity savings, is enabling us to maintain growth in a sustainable, profitable way – delivering value for customers and for shareholders.”
Shares in Tesco were up 1.8% at 427.7p at 09:33 GMT this morning.
