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Morrisons wins the Christmas top 4 supermarket shoot-out with a 6.5% sales increase
Wm Morrison Supermarkets posted the biggest rise in Christmas sales among Britain's top four grocers, bolstered by its focus on low prices and fresh foods, but joined rivals in sounding cautious about 2010.
Britain's No.4 grocer, looking for a chief executive after Marc Bolland was poached by Marks & Spencer Plc, said today sales at stores open at least a year rose 6.5%, excluding petrol and VAT sales tax, in the six weeks to January 3.
That was up from 4.3% in its fiscal third quarter, despite a continued moderation in food price inflation, and just above with analysts' average forecast of 6.3%.
It is also above broadly comparable numbers from sector leader Tesco Plc and number three J Sainsbury, while industry data suggest it is ahead of number two Asda (part of Wal-Mart Stores Inc) as well.
Morrison, which runs 422 stores, said its full-year expectations were unchanged and joined rivals in sounding a cautious note about the outlook for consumer spending, while adding its focus on low prices would help it to cope.
Commenting on Morrisons Christmas trading, Chairman Sir Ian Gibson said;
"Morrisons has had another strong Christmas. Once again our distinctive offer, eye-catching promotions and relentless focus on our core strengths of fresh food and great value combined to help customers have a great Christmas. This has enabled Morrisons to finish the year strongly and although we remain cautious on the economic environment and consumer spending, we look forward to further progress in the coming year."
Despite signs of tentative economic recovery across Europe, many retailers are struggling as shoppers look to pay down debt and worry about high unemployment.
Earlier today, Dutch group Royal Ahold NV reported a slowdown in quarterly sales growth.
Britain's stores seem to be faring better as survivors benefit from a number of business failures earlier in the downturn and shoppers take advantage of low interest rates.
But many UK retailers are worried that steps to reduce government debt, such as higher taxes and public spending cuts, could hit consumer confidence in the months ahead.
Morrison shares have lagged the DJ Stoxx European retail index by 15% over the past year as investors favour more cyclical stocks and worried about the lack of a CEO.
They closed at 298.8 pence last night, valuing the business at about £8 billion.
Britain's No.4 grocer, looking for a chief executive after Marc Bolland was poached by Marks & Spencer Plc, said today sales at stores open at least a year rose 6.5%, excluding petrol and VAT sales tax, in the six weeks to January 3.
That was up from 4.3% in its fiscal third quarter, despite a continued moderation in food price inflation, and just above with analysts' average forecast of 6.3%.
It is also above broadly comparable numbers from sector leader Tesco Plc and number three J Sainsbury, while industry data suggest it is ahead of number two Asda (part of Wal-Mart Stores Inc) as well.
Morrison, which runs 422 stores, said its full-year expectations were unchanged and joined rivals in sounding a cautious note about the outlook for consumer spending, while adding its focus on low prices would help it to cope.
Commenting on Morrisons Christmas trading, Chairman Sir Ian Gibson said;
"Morrisons has had another strong Christmas. Once again our distinctive offer, eye-catching promotions and relentless focus on our core strengths of fresh food and great value combined to help customers have a great Christmas. This has enabled Morrisons to finish the year strongly and although we remain cautious on the economic environment and consumer spending, we look forward to further progress in the coming year."
Despite signs of tentative economic recovery across Europe, many retailers are struggling as shoppers look to pay down debt and worry about high unemployment.
Earlier today, Dutch group Royal Ahold NV reported a slowdown in quarterly sales growth.
Britain's stores seem to be faring better as survivors benefit from a number of business failures earlier in the downturn and shoppers take advantage of low interest rates.
But many UK retailers are worried that steps to reduce government debt, such as higher taxes and public spending cuts, could hit consumer confidence in the months ahead.
Morrison shares have lagged the DJ Stoxx European retail index by 15% over the past year as investors favour more cyclical stocks and worried about the lack of a CEO.
They closed at 298.8 pence last night, valuing the business at about £8 billion.
Thu, 21st Jan 2010