Asda losses grow to almost £1bn as it fends off Aldi

Asda slumped deeper into the red last year, according to accounts showing hits from price cuts to lure back shoppers and one-off costs.

The UK's third-biggest supermarket chain reported a pre-tax loss of £989m - a 65% rise on the sum realised in 2024.

The annual figures were the first to fully reflect the impact of the arrival of former boss Allan Leighton.

He returned to the business as executive chairman in late 2024 and warned last year that a turnaround plan would take up to five years to bear full fruit.

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The industry veteran has Aldi firmly in his rear view mirror.

Asda has been bleeding market share to rivals, especially discounters, for years.

The most recent figures, released by researchers Worldpanel by Numerator, show Asda with 11.5% of the UK's grocery market.

Aldi, which brushed aside Morrisons to take the fourth spot in 2022, is now just behind Asda with 10.8%, mainly thanks to rapid store expansion which has supported its value focus.

Mr Leighton's plan, like so many others eyeing the challenge posed by Aldi and Lidl, has been to cut costs and invest heavily in the prices paid by shoppers in order to win them back and return its market share to some sort of growth.

The accounts for 2025 showed total sales falling by more than 3% to £25.9bn.

We are now half way through 2026 and its latest sales figures showed another decline, though at a slower pace.

Mr Leighton had warned that his plan, to be 5% to 10% cheaper than traditional rivals, would "materially reduce" 2025 profits.

The pre-tax loss included £656m from one-off costs including £284m related to its troubled IT separation from previous owner Walmart which hindered product availability and the new value focus.

"The reported loss does not reflect the underlying financial strength of the business and continued powerful cash generation," a spokesperson for Asda said.

Net debt was £3.1bn, a reduction of £500m on the previous year.

The group is majority owned by private equity firm TDR Capital. Walmart still holds 10%.

(c) Sky News 2026: Asda losses grow to almost £1bn as it fends off Aldi