Sector movers: Tesco boosts retailers after launch £500m price offensive

23rd Sep 2011 16:14

The food and drug retailers were the best performers on Friday afternoon, with Tesco leading the advance.The supermarket giant revealed on Thursday details of its 'Big Price Drop', a £500m price offensive which it claims will provide immediate help to struggling families. "From Monday, Tesco will reduce the prices of more than 3,000 products that customers need to buy every day - such as milk, bread, fruit and vegetables. Future cuts will also focus on products that families need most," the supermarket announced. The firm will also remove its double Clubcard points promotion which is expected to save it over £300m, a move which brokerage Evolution Securities has praised, saying, "We have always felt that double points were not valued by consumers and it was an ineffective investment by Tesco." Supermarket peers Sainsbury and Morrison were in demand despite the pressures the move may have on competition. A spokesperson from rival retail titan Sainsbury said, "This is classic smoke and mirrors from Tesco, giving with one hand and taking with the other. Removing double Clubcard points will save Tesco £350 million." "It is no surprise to us that Sainsbury's price match policy, together with a stronger own brand offer, has forced Tesco to take this kind of action," the spokesperson said. The steep sell-off in commodities has continued to weigh on the industrial metals and mining stocks, as investors worry about the demand for resources. First Quantum Minerals, Ferrexpo and Talvivaara Mining were the worst performers in the sector as metals prices took a tumble. By the close of trade on Friday, copper was down 3.01% at $338.35/lb, gold was 3.61% lower at $1,678.90/oz, while silver had dropped a whopping 10.15% to $32.87.BCTop performing sectors so far todayFood & Drug Retailers 4,221.79 +1.42%Food Producers & Processors 5,182.95 +1.33%Mobile Telecommunications 3,655.31 +1.12%Banks 3,256.93 +1.07%Tobacco 30,879.75 +1.05%Bottom performing sectors so far todayIndustrial Metals & Mining 4,700.13 -4.37%Automobiles & Parts 4,005.11 -3.33%Industrial Engineering 6,050.03 -3.06%Electronic & Electrical Equipment 2,445.28 -2.53%Chemicals 6,015.32 -2.51%