UK retailer Sainsbury’s has released its Interim Results for the 28 weeks to 16th September 2023, reporting its grocery sales were up 10.1% year-on-year.

The report highlighted that its retail operating profit was £485 million, up 2% year-on-year (YoY), which the retailer said reflected “strong volume-driven grocery profit growth”. As grocery sales were up 10.1%, Sainsbury’s said that the volume growth across both quarters was “driving record market share gains and consistent market outperformance”.

Its statutory profit before tax was £275 million, down 27% YoY, but Sainsbury’s attributed this to non-cash movements and one-off income from legal settlements in the prior year.

Following the implementation of Nectar Prices, over 6,00 products feature the lower prices, reportedly saving customers over £450 million since its launch. Since April, more than three million customers joined the loyalty scheme, to make a total 14 million Nectar customers part of the scheme.

Simon Roberts, chief executive of J Sainsbury plc, said: “Food is firmly back at the heart of Sainsbury’s. We’ve never been more competitive on price and our focus on value, innovation and service is giving more customers more reasons to shop with us.

“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.

“We’ve rolled out Nectar Prices to over 6,000 products and the vast majority of customers are now shopping with Nectar, saving over £450 million since April.

“We have extended increased colleague discount and free food during shifts indefinitely and, thanks to the hard work across our entire team, we’re delivering leading customer service and availability. I want to thank all of my colleagues for their fantastic efforts.

“As we head into this key trading period, we are encouraged by our strong momentum and we remain fully focused on delivering for customers and shareholders.”