Sainsbury's (SBRY) has capped off a year of turmoil for the UK's supermarkets with better than expected fourth-quarter trading.
Like-for-like retail sales fell 1.9 per cent, excluding fuel, beating consensus forecasts of a 2.3 per cent decline. Chief executive Mike Coupe said the trading environment remained "challenging" and that food price deflation would persist for the rest of the year as supermarkets slash prices in the ongoing battle for customers. Sainsbury has cut prices on more than 1,100 lines since November. That seems to be resonating with shoppers: Volumes on these lower-priced goods grew 3 per cent in the quarter. The convenience business continued to gather pace, too, growing sales by 14 per cent, while online order numbers also jumped 14 per cent.