Future Of British Business

Tesco UK Sales Drop as Cost of Living Weighs on Shoppers

  • CEO Murphy calls market environment “incredibly challenging”
  • Post-pandemic shopping normalizing as people eat out more

Tesco warned in April that profit will be squeezed this year.

Photographer: Daniel Leal/AFP/Getty Images

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Tesco Plc said shoppers are buying fewer items and trading down to cheaper own-brand versions of staples in an “incredibly challenging” market hit by the worst inflation in 40 years.

Britain’s biggest supermarket chain reportedBloomberg Terminal a greater-than-expected 1.5% decline in comparable UK sales in the first quarter, in fresh evidence of how rising prices are changing shopping behavior.