Morrisons: growth slows in first quarter

(CercleFinance.com) - Wm Morrison Supermarkets posted a slowdown in sales growth over its first quarter, and predicted that the market would remain "competitive" and "challenging.
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The British grocery chain said that sales at stores open over a year rose 2.3%, excluding fuel, in the 13 weeks to 5 May.

That was down from 3.8% growth in its previous quarter, and far below the 5.6% growth posted for the third quarter of its 2018/2019 financial year.

"We expect the market to remain competitive and challenging," the group said, noting that second-quarter sales will be hurt by a comparison with last year's hot summer weather and the World Cup.

Still, Morrisons said that it remains "confident" that both sales and earnings will grow.

Its shares were down 0.6% in London after these comments.

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