Asda has reported its first sales growth in over two years, which chairman Allan Leighton described as a "major milestone" in the grocer's turnaround efforts. Like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, increased by 0.2 per cent in the seven weeks leading up to mid-August. During this period, like-for-like food sales saw a 0.7 per cent jump.
Despite this recent growth, Asda's like-for-like sales fell by 2.3 per cent in the second quarter of 2026, with food sales dropping by 1.9 per cent. However, total revenue for the second quarter increased by 0.4 per cent to £6.5bn, with growth accelerating to 2.1 per cent year-on-year in recent weeks.
The supermarket has faced significant market share losses amid intense competition from discounters Aldi and Lidl. Its market share has stabilised at 11.5 per cent, according to Worldpanel by Numerator. Michael Gleeson, Asda's finance chief, noted that the company is navigating fragile consumer confidence.
Asda's net debt decreased from £4.1bn to £3.5bn in the year to December 2025. In the same period, its pre-tax loss widened by 65 per cent to £989m.