Asda is hanging on to its price leadership role but as this week’s Grocer 33 once again showed, it’s way closer than it used to be.
Where once Asda guaranteed it would be at least 10% cheaper than its big four rivals, it was just 79p (or 1.4%) cheaper than Sainsbury’s with this week’s £54.89 basket. And though it offered 19 items at the cheapest price, 10 of them exclusively so, Asda also had the highest year-on-year inflation of any of its rivals at 8.3% (though the basket was 3.1% cheaper than it was last month).
At the same time, Sainsbury’s is proving itself the most price competitive it’s been in years and this week was no exception. Although it was exclusively cheapest for only five items, it was there or thereabouts on pretty much every item, helped by nine price-only promotions.
Morrisons, which admitted this week that sales and profits could be hit by the cost of living crisis, was £2.82 off the pace with its £57.71 basket, but it did at least keep inflation in check (it was up 5.1%), offering four items at the cheapest price, including the muffins.
Tesco has been competitive for a number of weeks, particularly when its Clubcard Prices discount is applied, but on this week’s £58.83 basket, the loyalty scheme reduced the £3.94 margin by just 81p.
Tesco limited inflation to 4.3%, with only four items increasing in price.
Inflation at Waitrose was even lower at 1.3%. On the other hand, the £65.81 basket was over a tenner more expensive than Asda, and it price-matched its rivals on just the Lucozade.
The item with the highest inflation was the Volvic Touch of Fruit water, which was up 31% year on year, and 11% versus this time last month, It was more expensive across every single retailer.
No comments yet