Overview
- The retailer raised full-year adjusted operating profit guidance to £2.9–£3.1 billion after a stronger first half.
- First-half adjusted operating profit came in around £1.67 billion, with UK like-for-like sales up 4.9% and market share at about 28.4%.
- Tesco says cutting prices on roughly 6,500 products by an average of 9% lifted volumes, with extended warm weather boosting seasonal lines.
- Management expects an intensifying price fight into Christmas and plans to “pulse in strong deals” over the next three months.
- New policy-driven costs of about £235 million from employer National Insurance and roughly £90 million from a packaging levy are being offset by an efficiency programme targeting around £500 million of savings.