UK grocery inflation nudges lower to 17.2%

(Sharecast News) - Food inflation continued to edge lower, industry data showed on Tuesday, although it remains close to record highs.

According to the latest data from retail consultancy Kantar, grocery price inflation in the four weeks to 14 May fell for the second consecutive month, by 0.1 percentage points to 17.2%. It remains, however, the third fastest rate recorded by Kantar since 2008, and close to the all-time high of 17.5% seen in March.

The average cost of four pints of milk eased by 8p since last month, although Kantar noted that prices remain 30p higher than this time last year.

In the 12 weeks to 14 May, inflation was 17.1%, with prices rising fastest in eggs, milk and ambient cooking sauces.

Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar, said: "The drop in grocery price inflation is without doubt welcome news for shoppers, but it is still incredibly high. It could add an extra £833 to the average household's annual grocery bill if consumers don't shop in different ways."

Grocery sales, meanwhile, benefited from people stocking up for the long Coronation weekend, rising 10.8% year-on-year over the month. In the week of the Coronation, they jumped 16%, meaning an extra £218m passed through the tills. Sparkling wine and wine were both especially popular.

Among individual retailers, Waitrose - part of the John Lewis Partnership - saw sales jump 4.8% in the 12 weeks to 14 May, its highest rate of growth since April 2021.

The discounters continued to do well, however, with sales at Aldi ahead 24% and up 23.2% at Lidl.

Tesco, the UK's largest supermarket with a market share of 27.1%, saw sales rise 8.9%. At J Sainsbury's, sales increased 10.5%, and by 10.6% at Asda, after it benefited from strong demand for its Just Essentials range. In contrast, sales rose by just 0.6% at Wm Morrison, which has been hard hit by the discounters.

Online only grocer Ocado reported a 5.6% increase in sales.