Tesco has reported that its pre-tax profits fell by over 50% over the past year, due to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and rising inflation.
As a result, the Big 4 grocer’s pre-tax profits fell to £1 billion for the year to February 2023, compared with £2 billion in the same period last year, reporting a drop of 50.8%.
The supermarket giant also revealed its online sales remain nearly 60% ahead of pre-pandemic levels, with orders held at 1.1 million per week.
Group sales excluding fuel climbed up 5.3% to £57.6 million, with the grocer claiming the figure held up “relatively well”, despite cost-of-living pressures and some further post-pandemic normalisation.
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As a result, Tesco CEO Ken Murphy blamed “unprecedented levels of inflation in the prices we have paid our suppliers for their products and the cost of running our own operations”.
He said: “It’s been an incredibly tough year for many of our customers, and we have been determined to do everything we can to help. Our results reflect our continued investment in delivering great value and quality for our customers, whilst at the same time looking after our colleagues.”
This comes as the supermarket giant announced its UK employees are being paid £11.02 per hour.
“The resilience and agility that we have developed over the last few years have created a sustainable competitive advantage that leaves us well-placed to deal with any challenges that may arise. It has enabled us to deliver another strong performance across the group, whilst continuing to make strategic progress.”
“Perhaps most importantly, over the last few years, we have fundamentally repositioned our value proposition. We are the most competitive we have ever been, with our market-leading combination of Aldi Price Match, Clubcard Prices and Low Everyday Prices changing the way customers perceive value at Tesco.”
The news comes as Tesco announced it is extended its price lock on over 1,000 everyday products until 5 July, to help cash-struck households across the UK keep a close eye on their household budgets amid the cost-of-living crisis.
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