M&S joins supermarket price war in sign food inflation may be slowing

Marks & Spencer and Morrisons are the latest supermarkets to cut their prices in a sign that food inflation could finally slow down.

M&S said it cut the price of 70 products, such as ground beef, chickpeas and tortilla wraps, by 3 to 25 percent.

It also freezes prices on 150 products until the fall, including pork sausage, cheddar cheese and coleslaw, the upscale retailer said.

The announcement came on the heels of Morrisons’ revelation that it would cut prices on 47 items by an average of 25 percent across a range of high-volume goods.

This includes products such as ham, tomatoes and spinach, as well as other picnic items, according to the UK’s fifth largest supermarket.

For example, a 400g pack of honey-roasted ham has fallen from £3.49 to £2.75 following the changes.

Both announcements come as supermarket bosses try to lure in tight shoppers.

Morrisons said it has invested £26m to hold these prices for at least eight weeks, marking the chain’s sixth round of cuts so far this year.

Morrisons, which was bought in 2021 by US private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, dropped out of the so-called ‘Big Four’ supermarket last year as bargain hunters flocked to German discounter Aldi.

Aldi is the most popular supermarket in Britain in terms of market share next to Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda.

Food inflation exceeded 19 percent in April, due to the war in Ukraine, bureaucratic red tape for Brexit and labor shortages. However, some experts believe that the price war between supermarkets may push prices of consumer trolleys down somewhat.

Victoria Scholar, analyst at Interactive Investor, said: “At a time when consumers are grappling with the cost of living crisis and household budgets are under pressure, price is a key determinant among shoppers when deciding where to shop. Go shopping.

“As supermarkets scramble to undercut each other, lower prices on the shelves could help lower overall food price inflation.”

Last week Tesco CEO Ken Murphy said food inflation had probably peaked but prices were likely to remain high.

Clive Black, a retail analyst at Shore Capital, highlighted the difference between deflation – where items become cheaper – and disinflation, when the rate of inflation slows.

“These supermarket price cuts are disinflation rather than deflation,” he said.

“It’s about stores trying to tell shoppers that they appreciate that inflation is high and encouraging them to spend money anyway.”

A 250g pack of Morrisons ground beef has dropped from £2.35 to £2.09 under the changes. But last year it was £1.89 this time.

The inflation figures will be announced tomorrow, followed by the Bank of England’s interest rate decision on Thursday.

M&S shares fell 1 percent, or 1.9 pence, to 188.5 pence yesterday.