Profits boost for Sainsbury's

British supermarket giant Sainsbury’s today said it had grown half-year profits by a fifth despite the “distraction” of its £10.6bn (€15bn) takeover saga.

The retail chain, which was the focus of a failed Qatari-backed takeover approach, banked interim pre-tax profits of £232m (€329m), marginally better than the £231m (€327m) expected by analysts.