Asda and Sainsbury's lose ground in UK

Supermarket chains Asda and Sainsbury's were both dealt blows as they lost ground on market leader Tesco. Figures from market research group TNS Superpanel showed Tesco's share of the grocery market held firm at 30.3% for the 12 weeks to October 9.

But the news was not so good for its closest rivals, with Asda's slice of the market falling from 16.9% to 16.7%, while Sainsbury's share was down 0.1% at 15.6%. Edward Gardner, of TNS Superpanel, said: "For both Sainsbury's and Asda, over the last year the evidence is that every decimal point of share is being fiercely contested."

Tesco's market share was the same as last month and up from 28.1% a year ago. But it was still less than its record of 30.5% achieved two months ago. The fight for second place continued, with prospects looking better for Sainsbury's a year after it launched the Making Sainsbury's Great Again campaign.

It recently posted a third consecutive quarter of like-for-like sales growth, and although its market share fell this month, it was 0.2% higher than a year ago following the major overhaul and rebranding. Meanwhile, Asda's share was 0.1% lower than this time last year.

Mr Garner said: "Sainsbury's continues to show growth with the share moving up from a year ago. "If past history is repeated we should see this share move above 16% during Christmas as Sainsbury's traditionally does well during this period."

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