Fortunes of UK and Irish supermarkets take separate paths

The fortunes of supermarkets are diverging on either side of the Irish Sea, with UK grocers posting their first fall in sales since June three years ago and Irish supermarkets adding sales and increasing prices.

Market researcher Kantar said the sales dip in the UK reflected a heatwave a year earlier which had boosted demand, and sales this year of beer and ice cream in Britain had fallen back.