Sainsbury’s earnings have been boosted due to soaring grocery sales as the supermarket giant focussed on keeping costs for their customers down.
The supermarket giant said in the six months to September underlying pre-tax profits was £340 million.
On a statutory bases pre-tax profits were down 27% to £275 million compared to £376 million the previous year.
In the first three months there was a 6.6% rise in-like-for-like retail sales not including fuel.
The company said they had previously guided for annual profits of £640 million to £700 million after delivering £690 million in 2022 to 2023.
Chief executive Simon Roberts said: “Food is firmly back at the heart of Sainsbury’s.”
He added: “We know people are still finding things tough and we’re working harder than ever to reduce our costs, putting the money back into our customers’ pockets through lower prices on the products they buy most often.
“I’m pleased to say food inflation is coming down and we are passing savings on to customers.”
For the Christmas season, the group said “strong trading momentum has continued in recent weeks and we are confident heading into the peak trading period.”
