Competition heats up as Asda announces retaliatory price cuts

IN the latest volley by Asda in the supermarket wars, the Leeds-headquartered supermarket has announced it is cutting own brand “essentials” by up to 15%.

It will be cutting the price of items such as tomato ketchup and instant coffee, as well as other products including wine, chicken, beef and sausages.

Last month owners Walmart insisted that they would not be making further investment in price cuts, apart from the planned £1.5bn over the next few years.

Only last month the company posted Asda’s worst ever quarterly sales drop, with revenues dropping 7.5%.

The move follows rival Yorkshire supermarket Morrisons’ announcement last week that it would be cutting the prices of 160 items by around 12%. A month ago, it said it would be cutting the price of 1,000 items.

Asda chief executive, Sean Clarke, who replaced Andy Clarke this summer as turnaround plans go underway, said: “This week we’re taking the next step in our journey to deliver better value for our customers and to improve quality.

“We will continue to listen to our customers and take action, with better prices for products they buy week in, week out.”