The pace of grocery inflation in Britain slowed last month as retailers ramped up promotions before Christmas, providing a little relief for consumers bracing for further tax rises in this month’s budget.
Grocery inflation stood at 4.7% in the four weeks to 2 November, easing from 5.2% in the previous four weeks, according to figures from Worldpanel by Numerator, formerly known as Kantar.
Official data published last month showed overall UK inflation held steady at 3.8% in September, with food inflation slowing. The next official figures are due on 19 November, shortly before the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, presents her budget on 26 November.
Worldpanel said prices were rising fastest in markets such as chocolate confectionery, fresh meat and coffee and were falling fastest in household paper, sugar confectionery and dog food.
It said grocery sales grew 3.2% year on year over the four-week period – with spending on deals rising 9.4% compared with an increase of 1.8% on full priced goods.
Fraser McKevitt, the head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel, said: “Christmas ads are hitting our screens and the race to the big day is on in the supermarket sector. Retailers are very alive to the financial struggles that some households are facing, not least ahead of this year’s budget.
“They’re eager to show how they’re offering shoppers value for money, putting the emphasis on price cuts rather than multibuy offers.
“It’s not just the Grinch who’s looking for savings, with just shy of 30% of consumer spending at the grocers on promoted items in October, a figure that we expect to go even higher as we get closer to Christmas.”
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The Worldpanel data showed strong sales at Ocado – which registered a 15.9% jump in sales compared with a year earlier – Lidl and Tesco, which has made significant gains on rivals so far this year. Asda continued to struggle, with sales down 3.9%.