UK supermarkets spend hundreds of millions on promotions in price war

At Sainsbury’s and Tesco, nearly 20% of items sold are on a price match, Kantar said. Photograph: Andy Rain/EPA

Supermarkets are spending hundreds of millions of pounds on promotional deals for shoppers, as the grocery price war ramps up.

Together, nearly 30% of total spending by Britain’s biggest supermarkets was on special offers and discounts in the four weeks ended 20 April, according to the market research company Kantar.