Grocery price inflation dropped to two-year low in the UK, as shoppers prioritised savings on Valentine’s Day, new data on Tuesday showed.

Kantar said grocery sales in the 12 weeks to February 18 were up 5.1% annually to £35.37 billion from £33.64 billion.

Annual UK grocery price inflation in February eased to 5.3% in February, marking the lowest rate since March 2022 and down from 6.8% from January.

‘Things are looking up for shoppers this February. Consumers have been navigating a grocery inflation rate of more than 4% for two years now, so this latest easing of price rises is especially welcome,’ said Tom Steel, strategic insight director at Kantar.

‘Though there‘s been lots of discussion about the impact the Red Sea shipping crisis might have on the cost of goods, supermarkets have been pulling out all the stops to keep prices down and help people manage their budgets.’

Over the 12-week period, grocery price inflation stood at 6.1%. Prices are rising fastest in markets such as sugar confectionery, chocolate confectionery and frozen potato products, and are falling fastest in butter, milk and toilet tissues.

In the 12 weeks, Tesco PLC saw a 6.2% sales rise to £9.76 billion compared to the same period a year before. Tesco’s market share ticked up to 27.6% from 27.3%, defending its position as the UK’s largest grocer.

J Sainsbury PLC’s sales rose 7.6% to £5.51 billion, as its market share increased to 15.6% from 15.2%.

Ocado Retail sales rose 4.9% to £659 million, as its market share was unchanged at 1.9%. The online-only grocer is a joint venture between Ocado Group PLC and Marks & Spencer Group PLC.

Meanwhile, German discounters Aldi and Lidl continued to grow. Lid sales rose 11%, while Aldi’s rose 5.7%. Lidl’s market share rose to 7.5% from 7.1%, while Aldi’s was unchanged at 9.4%.

Shares in Tesco were up 0.2% to 279.10 pence each in London on Tuesday morning. Sainsbury shares were up 0.8% to 255.60p. Ocado rose by 0.6% to 494.60p, whilst Marks & Spencer edged up 0.8% to 240.90p.

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