Asda increases market share despite slower sales growth

Sales growth slowed down slightly in the quarter to 7.2% compared with 8.4% in the previous quarter. The Wal-Mart owned supermarket said that fresh meat, frozen food and groceries were the best performers, reflecting the trend of scratch cooking.

Asda's market share also increased from 16.7% to 17% and the company said that for the first time in its 44-year history, it had attracted more than 18 million customers a week.

Judith McKenna, chief financial officer at Asda said: ‘Consumers continue to be somewhat cautious, with many people choosing to use any extra money they have to pay down debt and save more. This is not going to be a straight line economic recovery, however, in this environment, we are well placed to continue gaining market share by giving customers what they want - great products at low prices.'

This article was first published on marketingmagazine.co.uk