Asda sales slump deepens as Aldi closes in on struggling rival
Asda's sales slump has intensified as discount store Aldi closes in on the struggling supermarket.
The British grocer's sales dropped 5.6pc in the 12 weeks to March 23, according to Kantar – marking a sharper decline than the 5pc decline in the prior period and a 5.2pc fall before that.
The latest fall means that Asda's market share has fallen to 12.5pc from 13.6pc a year earlier and raises the risk that Asda could soon drop out of the top three largest supermarkets in the UK.
Asda was taken over by private equity giant TDR Capital and the Issa brothers in February 2021. Since then, poor performance has chipped away at the group, taking its share Britain's grocery market from 14.8pc to the current 12.5pc.
Rival Aldi has narrowed the gap with Asda over the past year, according to Kantar, rising from a 10.3pc share to an 11pc share at the end of March. The German discounter overtook Morrisons as the UK's fourth largest grocer in September 2022.
Clive Black, a Shore Capital analyst, said: 'At this rate, it wouldn't be that far out before Aldi would become the number three in the UK.'
He said it was concerning that a recent push to slash prices at Asda 'doesn't look like it has changed the momentum whatsoever'.
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