Tesco 'One-in-Front' Campaign Wins Prestigious Retail Week Award Using IRISYS Queue Busting Camera Technology (LONDON, March 2 /PRNewswire)

Tesco, the UK's largest grocery chain, last night won the prestigious Retail Week Customer Service Initiative of the Year award, for its hugely successful "one-in-front" campaign. Using SMARTLANE queue-busting camera technology, developed by IRISYS, in-store queue waiting time is now kept to a minimum for customers, which Sir Terry Leahy, Chief Executive of Tesco, sites as a key factor in boosting store profits.

Described by the judges as a "sight of the future", the queue busting cameras represented "what Tesco does well and what helps give it a competitive advantage".

The IRISYS cameras use sophisticated thermal imaging technology to measure and predict customers' arrival at checkouts, enabling managers to react in real-time to ensure the right number of tills are open to deliver the best possible service to customers.

In a recent earnings call, Sir Terry Leahy credited the thermal imaging cameras as being a key factor in the company's half-year pre-tax profits rising ten per cent to GBP1.092 billion. Leahy commented, "We have heat seeking cameras that sense the number of customers entering a store and predict the checkouts that need to be open in an hour. We can monitor and manage the service customers get much more precisely - by customer, by store and by the minute. Thanks to this, a quarter of a million more customers every week don't have to queue."

The IRISYS SMARTLANE solution uses ceiling mounted infra-red sensorsabove the checkout lanes to detect the number and behaviour of customer groups at the checkouts. The intelligent sensors automatically calculate the average queue length, average wait time and overall store performance against Tesco's One in Front(x) (OIF) customer service commitment. Displaying real-time queuing data on the shop floor enables the retailer's management team to deploy their multi-skilled staff to react quickly to potential queuing issues.

Attila Winstanley, Productivity Director at Tesco adds, "Ensuring we offer the best service at the checkouts is one of our core disciplines, and it is also one of our biggest challenges. Historically we have manually captured data on queue lengths at the checkout, but accuracy levels were varied. SMARTLANE accurately captures our OIF performance in real time, allowing Front End Checkout Managers to deliver better levels of service, whilst at the same time optimising the deployment of checkout staff."

These recent broker views are worth a re-read.


06-02-2007
shares in Tesco were firmer in early deals after UBS raised its price targets to 550 pence from 470, dealers said. UBS said it believed investors were starting to value the food retail sector using the PropCo/OpCo methodology, which involves splitting the businesses into property company (PropCo) and the underlying operating business (OpCo) and valuing them separately. It said the new valuations have been prompted by recent private equity interest and increasing property prices in the UK. It said that by using this methodology, Tesco has an estimated 22.7 bln stg of freehold assets which leaves the operating company (OpCo) trading at 10.2 bln stg which, when applying a 5% rental yield, values the business at 8 times price earnings to February 2008. It said Tescos OpCo generates a low EBIT margin of around 4 pct, but stronger profit growth of 14%.


14-02-2007
target price increased to 500 pence from 400 pence by Credit Suisse as the broker said the groups US west-coast roll-out could mark the start of bigger expansion and sustain the groups profile, dealers said. In an upbeat note published this morning, Credit Suisse argued that although the US expansion is unlikely to transform Tescos near-term profit & loss account, it could provide numerous opportunities for growth if successful. The broker believes that sustaining the groups rapid growth profile of the last ten years for another ten now seems a realistic, rather than upbeat, scenario. Credit Suisse noted the stock boasts unique growth visibility among European food retailers.


14-03-2007
SG Securities raised its stance on the supermarket giant to buy from hold and pegged its price target at 490 pence, saying that Tesco could benefit from a re-jigged property portfolio and sector valuation. In a note to clients, SG securities said the supermarket chain might make the most out of its property portfolio through advantageous interest rates, leveraging its British property portfolio and investing in cheap freeholds overseas. The advantages to the retailer are that it can keep a freehold level of more than 80% and retain a comfortable level of asset control, while cashing in on an excellent growth rate. The main threat, according to the brokerage, is that a bid for rival Sainsbury will fail to materialise and that valuation in the sector would thus overlook Tescos adjusted property balance. Bid or no bid, however, the property upside that Tesco can benefit from, will remain and make Tesco look very price-competitive in respect to its competitors, the brokerage added.


16-03-2007
upgraded to add from hold by Dresdner Kleinwort with an increased target price of 460 pence, up from 425 on valuation grounds, according to dealers. In a note landing on fund managers desks today, the broker noted that Tesco shares have strongly lagged both their European and UK peers so far this year. Dresdner Kleinwort pointed out that the market is increasingly discounting a takeover of Sainsbury PLC, and as importantly, Carrefour SA moving towards a re-leveraging of its capital structure, with potentially, a reduced appetite for physical growth. The broker said in both cases the potential benefits to Tescos investment case are obvious.

Wednesday 21 Mar 2007

Tesco and British Land in 650m property JV

LONDON (ShareCast) - Supermarket Tesco and property firm British Land announced a 650m property joint venture, which covers 21 stores across the UK.

Tesco said the deal will generate it net proceeds of 570m, with recognised property profits of 142m.

The 50/50 joint venture has a 20 year term with an early termination option in 2017.

British Land said the portfolio has an initial rent of 29m per annum, which are subject to annual RPI indexed increases for the first 20 years capped at 3.5% per annum.

The deal allows Tesco to renew or buy back the stores at open market value after 20 years.

"The 50/50 joint venture enables Tesco to release funding for its future growth, whilst maintaining the flexibility to operate and adapt its property assets," said Tesco.

British Land said "We are very pleased to conclude this transaction with Tesco, increasing our investment in one of our favoured retail sectors where we see significant growth potential."

Tesco, British Land Form 650 Million Pound Joint Venture

By Angharad Couch

March 21 (Bloomberg) -- Tesco Plc and British Land Co. formed a 650 million-pound ($1.28 billion) joint venture to sell and lease back superstores.

The partnership will involve 21 stores and the agreement will last 20 years with a termination option in 2017, according to a Regulatory News Service statement sent by British Land today.

British Land is Europe's second-largest real estate investment trust, while Tesco is Britain's biggest retailer.

21 March 2007

NEW SUPERSTORE JOINT VENTURE

The British Land Company PLC and Tesco plc have formed a new 650 million Joint venture. The limited partnership incorporates 21 Superstores across the UK, all occupied by Tesco. It brings the number of joint ventures between the two companies to four. The new joint venture has a 20 year term with an early termination option in 2017.

The portfolio has an initial rent of 29 million pa secured against 21 high quality food stores. The rents are subject to annual RPI indexed increases for the first 20 years capped at 3.5% pa, with open market reviews in year 20 and options at that date for Tesco to either renew or buy back the stores at open market value.

The occupational leases have been structured to provide operational flexibility, in keeping with Tesco's strategy of continued investment, refreshment and growth of its store portfolio. This customer focused approach also reflects British Land's retail investment strategy.

Robert Bowden, British Land's Investment Director, said: 'We are very pleased to conclude this transaction with Tesco, increasing our investment in one of our favoured retail sectors where we see significant growth potential. The acquisition also adds to our portfolio of investments with indexed or minimum rent increases, now amounting to over 2 billion.'

Colliers CRE advised British Land on the purchase and Tesco were advised by Morgan Williams.


Tesco and British Land have three other property joint ventures, the first of which was formed in 1996. Assets in the joint ventures total 1.16 billion as at December 2006. The joint ventures include: 4 Retail Parks, 3 Shopping Centres and 13 Tesco stores.

Broker Recommendations - Wednesday 21st March 2007, 12:31 pm


Seymour Pierce has outperform on Tesco.

RNS Number:4713T
Tesco PLC
21 March 2007


Tesco PLC - Transaction in Own Shares

Tesco PLC announces that on the 21st of March 2007 it purchased from Deutsche
Bank AG London 2,000,000 ordinary shares at an average price of 439.2242 pence
per share. The purchased shares will be cancelled.

Tesco in 570m stores sell-off
Manfreda Cavazza
22 March 2007

Tesco is raking in 570m from selling a chunk of stores to British Land in a move that shows its commitment to unlocking value from its lucrative property estate.


Retailers have come under investor pressure to release cash from their stores to prevent the private equity firms circling the sector from doing it themselves.

Sainsbury is facing a takeover bid from a consortium led by CVC, which wants to fund the deal by selling the majority of the supermarket's 7bn stores estate.

Tesco's deal with British Land involves selling 21 shops to the property group and leasing them back at an annual cost of 29m. It is part of a wider initiative launched by Tesco last year to release 5bn from its 22bn supermarket estate, of which 1.5bn will be returned to investors in share buy-backs.

The rest is being re-invested into the business, including an aggressive programme of expansion overseas.

Tesco (up 2p yesterday to 437p) announced a similar deal with the British Airways Pension fund in January, thereby raising a total of 445m. Retail analyst Richard Ratner, who works at Seymour Pierce, said: 'This is more good news because it shows Tesco, unlikely to be a private equity target like Sainsbury, is committed to unlocking the value of its property portfolio in a similar fashion.'

Tesco Transaction in Own Shares

RNS Number:5599T
Tesco PLC
22 March 2007



22 March 2007

Tesco PLC - Transaction in Own Shares

Tesco PLC announces that on the 22nd of March 2007 it purchased from Deutsche
Bank AG London 500,000 ordinary shares at an average price of 440.9856 pence
per share. The purchased shares will be cancelled.

Some recent news from earlier this month shows you would not be alone in regarding this stock as a long-term buy.



LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) - Shares in Tesco Plc rose 2.1 percent in early Friday trade on news that billionaire investor Warren Buffett has a 2.9 percent stake in Britain's biggest retailer, as well as an upbeat broker note.

According to Buffett's annual letter to shareholders, his insurance and investment company Berkshire Hathaway Inc. owned 229,070,000 shares of Tesco at the end of 2006, worth $1.82 billion.

Tesco is due to open its first stores in the United States later this year and Buffett's purchase was seen by some analysts as a vote of confidence in its expansion into the world's most competitive retail market.

Buffett had previously owned about a 1 percent stake in Tesco, according to an industry source, but analysts said this was the first time they had seen a precise figure.

"Warren's got a great record of long-term investments in growth companies and it's really good to have him on board," a Tesco spokesman said.

The news was not a big surprise with British food retailing and Tesco's international expansion proving attractive to investors, said Numis Securities' Steve Davies.

Morgan Stanley's Nick Coulter raised his price target on Tesco to 490 pence per share from 380 pence in a note on Thursday on hopes for the success of its U.S. venture. Traders said that upgrade was also helping the stock.

"Tesco's entry into the United States could open a material avenue of growth and value creation," Coulter said.

Tesco, with a third of Britain's grocery market and operations in 12 countries, is due to open its "Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market" stores in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Diego in the autumn.

It opened its first own-branded store in China in January and will expand to the Turkish capital Ankara later this year, sources familiar with the matter said this week.

Tesco has also benefited from a sector-wide upgrade of British retailers since a private-equity consortium said last month it was considering a bid for Britain's third-biggest supermarket group, J. Sainsbury.

Tesco has launched its 1,000-page-plus catalogue. Up until the last few weeks the marketing behind the Tesco Direct brand has been fairly low key, but it is now quite visible after promotions in the Sunday papers and a TV advertising campaign.

In the light of present bids for several stores I don't think we can rule out the possibility of a private equity approach for this company.

27 March 200

Tesco PLC announces that on the 27th of March 2007 it purchased from Deutsche
Bank AG London 500,000 ordinary shares at an average price of 442.8 pence per
share.


26 March 2007

Tesco PLC announces that on the 26th of March 2007 it purchased from Deutsche
Bank AG London 2,000,000 ordinary shares at an average price of 438.81 pence per
share.


23 March 2007

Tesco PLC announces that on the 23rd of March 2007 it purchased from Deutsche
Bank AG London 500,000 ordinary shares at an average price of 439.8391
pence per share.


22 March 2007

Tesco PLC announces that on the 22nd of March 2007 it purchased from Deutsche
Bank AG London 500,000 ordinary shares at an average price of 440.9856 pence
per share.


21 March 2007

Tesco PLC announces that on the 21st of March 2007 it purchased from Deutsche
Bank AG London 2,000,000 ordinary shares at an average price of 439.2242 pence
per share.



The purchased shares will be cancelled.

Tesco "outperform"

LONDON, March 23 (newratings.com) - In a research note published yesterday, analysts at Seymour Pierce reiterate their "outperform" rating on Tesco Plc.




Tesco "buy"

LONDON, March 21 (newratings.com) - Analyst Philip Dorgan of Panmure Gordon maintains his "buy" rating on Tesco Plc (TCO.FSE). The target price is set to 500p.

In a research note published this morning, the analyst mentions that Tesco is entering into another joint venture with British Land, which is expected to increase the former companys store count by 21 stores going forward. According to the analyst, the transaction indicates the significant undervaluation of the sectors property portfolio.




Tesco upgraded to "add"

LONDON, March 16 (newratings.com) - Analysts at Dresdner Kleinwort upgrade Tesco Plc (TCO.FSE) from "hold" to "add." The target price has been raised from 425p to 460p.

In a research note published this morning, the analysts mention that the companys stock has significantly underperformed that of its European and UK peers so far this year. Although Tescos sales growth is unlikely to accelerate in the near term, the regulatory risks associated with the company have diminished slightly, the analysts say.

The fastest growing mobile operator is.......Tesco

(Posted in Mobile Phones by mad4mobilephones on 27 Mar 2007)


With a third of all new pre-pay connections during 2006 Tesco has rapidly become the second largest pay as you go retailer in the UK. Last year Tesco Mobile added 420,000 new customers and they now have a total subscriber base of 1.4 million users.

Tesco Mobile was launched as a joint venture with O2 and is now the fastest growing mobile network in the UK. They added more pre pay customers than T Mobile, Vodafone and Virgin Mobile during 2006 thanks in part to Vodafone and Orange focussing more on the lucrative contract phone sector.

Andy Dewhurst, the chief executive of Tesco Mobile, said

It's amazing how many people don't know what they pay for a phone call. They do with Tesco as we charge a simple flat rate.

Scotland on Sunday. 25 March 2007

Tesco and Royal take on money websites

TESCO Personal Finance and Royal Bank of Scotland are expected to launch a price comparison website amid concerns that existing sites are having an adverse effect on the sale of insurance and credit cards.

It is understood that Sir Fred Goodwin, the RBS chief executive, has given the go-ahead for the site in conjunction with its Tesco partner and that it will be rolled out in the next few weeks.

Goodwin, according to sources, is rattled by the impact of online price comparison sites such as Moneysupermarket.com, moneynet.co.uk and confused.com. The insurance, credit card and personal loan markets are being commoditised over the net, prices are being forced down and banks are having to face up to the challenge.

Former Standard Life and HBOS banking guru Jim Spowart got in on the act by launching PeoplesChampion.com for SMG, and Eamonn Rice, a former partner at Ernst & Young, launched another similar proposition called mform, backed by 5m from fund manager Artemis.

Direct Line, which has been ambiguous in its support for these sites, is said to be losing market share while Churchill, another RBS subsidiary, is spending heavily on television campaigns. The supermarket banks are also said to be under pressure as shoppers shift online for unsecured loans and car insurance.

One source said: "The banks like to be in control and they are seeing control slip away from them."

A spokesman for the Royal Bank said: "We look at a huge range of potential products and services all the time. I cannot confirm or deny whether we are looking at this option."

Tesco Says Will Own Most of Its Property
Wed Mar 28, 2007

By Rachel Sanderson

BARCELONA (Reuters) - Tesco is reviewing its real estate portfolio while raising 5 billion pounds ($9.8 billion) from its property assets, but the world's fifth largest retailer will always own most of its space, its chief executive said on Wednesday.

"Tesco has a lot of property, but it is important to remember property ownership is an integral part of retailing and Tesco will always have a majority of its space as owned space," CEO Terry Leahy told Reuters in an interview at the World Retail Congress.

Retail property has come into investors' focus since a private equity consortium revealed it was considering a bid for Britain's third largest supermarket group J. Sainsbury last month. A sale and leaseback for its at least 7.5 billion pounds ($15 billion) worth of property is expected to be the engine of any deal.

Tesco is one of Europe's largest property owners, with an estimated nearly 20 billion pounds of real estate in 13 countries.

Leahy said Tesco would continue to review its real estate assets given changes in the "appetite" for owned property and different kinds of financing, but declined to say whether he planned to expand the program.

"We always keep it under review which is the thing to do with property ... but at the moment we are busy executing the program. It is very successful," Leahy said.

He added Tesco had "no plans" to revalue its property on its books following the surge in real estate prices and private equity interest in the sector.

"We don't revalue our property...It is probably more meaningful to do as we are doing, which is to actively trade our properties to establish their true worth in a real market," Leahy said.

Tesco would consider long-term financing again after the issuance of its 50-year bond last year, Leahy said.

"It seemed to be successful program and there was appetite for it," he said.

Tesco, like international rivals Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and France's Carrefour, is raising funds to take part in a retailers' land grab that spans emerging economies to the United States.

Wal-Mart beat Tesco to a retail partnership with India's Bharti Enterprises last year. Tesco remains outside the fast-growing economy where foreign multibrand retailers need a domestic partner to enter.

"We are still considering what to do in India. We do obviously require a partner there if we were to invest in India and there are plenty of very good business and people in India," Leahy said.

There was "no point being held to dates or a timetable" with regard to entering India, he added.

More advanced is Tesco's much anticipated, but highly secretive expansion in the United States slated for the autumn where it will compete withn Trader Joe's convenience stores and a lower price version of Whole Foods Market.

Some analysts have speculated Tesco will need to roll out upwards of 300 U.S. stores in its first year to be able to compete. Leahy declined to give numbers but said he would be "rolling out fairly quickly."

Tesco banks on new store format to win over U.S.
Thu Mar 29, 2007

BARCELONA (Reuters) - Tesco, the world's fifth-largest retailer, believes it will create a new market in U.S. food retailing when it opens in the United States later this year with a new store format.

"We can't just go to the United States and do the same thing that is already done there. If we do something new, that will create business," Chief Executive Terry Leahy said on Wednesday on the margins of the World Retail Congress in Barcelona.

The much-anticipated launch of its "Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market" in the autumn is so secretive that Tesco built a test store inside a California warehouse and told curious onlookers it was a Hollywood film set.

Tesco has said it will open first in Southern California, Arizona and Nevada, but analysts expect it to roll out nationally within the year, tapping a new market for lower-cost, healthy fresh foods, particularly in inner cities.

"I don't think you ever set out to take on any one competitor. I think we can grow the market. I don't think it's a case of taking business from existing competitors," Leahy said.

Leahy kept with Tesco's policy of not providing the finer details of its opening in the world's most competitive retail market, and reiterated he did not expect it to go head-to-head with world leader Wal-Mart Stores.

One person familiar with the matter has said Britain's biggest retailer looks set to launch a format straddling a Trader Joe's convenience store and a cheaper priced version of premium organic food shop Whole Foods Market.

But analysts expect that if it finds early success, Tesco will roll out larger superstores which would put it in direct competition with Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer.

Tesco has said it will spend 250 million pounds per year to open stores of just 10,000 square feet (930 sq m), smaller than a traditional 45,000-square-foot grocer or a Wal-Mart supercentre, with 200,000 square feet.

It aims to open more than 100 stores within a year. Analysts speculate that figure could be closer to 300, with some saying the high morale at Tesco's headquarters in El Segundo, California, could give it a competitive advantage.

A buoyant mood at U.S. Tesco could be particularly uncomfortable for Wal-Mart, which built its business on strong worker loyalty but has seen some of that eroded in the past year by negative publicity and employee lawsuits.

"Morale and motivation and making people feel good about themselves and good about the cause is an important ingredient in the success of any retail business and probably more so in America," Leahy said. "American employees really enjoy working for a business they believe in."

Tesco denies abusing local market power.

Supermarket claims Competition Commission's line of inquiry into its dominance is flawed

Zoe Wood and Nick Mathiason
Sunday April 1, 2007
The Observer


Tesco will tomorrow strenuously rebut allegations that it exerts a stranglehold over the UK's 124bn grocery market as fresh evidence suggests that supermarket demands are putting farmers out of existence. Britain's most powerful retailer will criticise attempts by the Competition Commission to establish whether it has dominance in specific British towns and cities.

In its 28-page response to the commission, to be published tomorrow, Tesco will say: 'It is not credible ... to suggest that a grocery retailer could become so entrenched in a local area as to make that area incontestable by others.' Tesco will argue that virtually every British consumer enjoys healthy choice. And it will say that the planning system, far from inhibiting supermarket growth, has enabled 600 new stores to be built by the sector in five years since 2000. The document comes as many analysts predict that the commission will check the supermarket's expansion and prevent more so-called Tesco towns - such as Inverness where it collects 52p in every 1 spent - by introducing a competition test that will benefit store chains not already operating in the area.
But Tesco has branded such a move as 'wholly inappropriate'.

The competition watchdog is investigating whether the Big Four supermarkets abuse their power. The 28-page response addresses preliminary concerns raised by the commission in January. At that time its chairman, Peter Freeman, said he was 'concerned with whether Tesco, or any other supermarket, can get into such a strong position, either nationally or locally, that no other retailer can compete effectively'.
Since then the commission has been looking at how he supermarkets compete at local level, examining whether they take advantage by hiking up prices or offering less choice to consumers when they are the dominant retailer. But Tesco has effectively dubbed the logic behind the commission's decision to go down the local route 'flawed'. It argues that a different model should be used to judge whether competition is healthy - one based on how many shoppers flit between rival stores. It also insists: 'We do not raise prices or otherwise worsen our retail offer where there is less local competition.'

In January Freeman, concerned that suppliers were too frightened to contribute to the inquiry, encouraged anonymous submissions. Some farmers have now come forward. An anonymous statement published recently on the commission's website highlights the plight of one of Britain's dairy farmers. 'The price we are being forced to accept today is almost identical to the prices we were getting from the old Milk Marketing Board in 1986,' it says. 'We are being destroyed by the constant passing down of price cuts.'
Haresfield Farms goes on the record for the farmers lobby stating 'no evidence does not equal no problem'.

Separately, Freeman has admitted a private equity bid for Sainsbury's could hamper the inquiry's progress. A private equity consortium of CVC, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Blackstone and Texas Pacific Group has been given a deadline of April 13 by the Takeover Panel to table an expected 11bn bid. 'If there was a private equity bid, we would obviously want to monitor it' he said.

From The Sunday Times
April 1, 2007
Tesco sets out its stall to regulator
Jenny Davey

TESCO, Britains biggest supermarket chain, will defend its market-leading position to competition regulators tomorrow, arguing that todays shoppers are so price sensitive they will spend up to 30 minutes driving to their chosen grocery chain twice as long as was previously estimated.

The company, which is seeking to prove that the grocery market should be judged as a single national market or series of large interlocking markets rather than a collection of small local markets, argues that even a 5% price increase in grocery prices at a supermarket chain will cause marginal shoppers to switch to a rival.

This has been calculated using an international analytical tool, called the SSNIP test. Tesco claims that customer behaviour in most of its larger supermarket sites can be predicted with this tool. Many grocery markets overlap with one another and the whole country is covered by one or more of them, Tesco says.

It argues that the Competition Commissions approach to geographic market definition has been overly simplistic so far because it refers to the distance most customers are prepared to travel.

The supermarket giant insists that the commission should instead define the market with reference to marginal customers those who are willing to switch between retailers.

Tesco is trying to avoid being forced to sell off stores to rivals by the regulator by proving the market is large, interlocking and competitive. That is because in some local markets it has a market share of more than 50%.

BBC news
Sunday

Tesco has said it would be "surprised" if a competition probe into the UK's supermarkets calls for it to sell off some of the undeveloped sites it owns.
The firm was responding to a Sunday Telegraph article which said the Competition Commission may call for Tesco to give up some of the plots.
Tesco has the largest land development portfolio of all the supermarkets.
The Competition Commission is due to publish its initial findings into the supermarket sector later this month.

According to the Sunday Telegraph, at least two of the Competition Commission's six panel members looking into the supermarket sector want the main companies to give up some of the land they own for further development.
They are said to consider the big "land banks" to be barriers to new players entering the marketplace.
Tesco's executive director Lucy Neville-Rolfe said the company would be surprised if the Competition Commission hurt consumers by "penalising competitive success".
"Tesco's land pipeline reflects our flexible and innovative approach, which goes with the grain of government policy," she said.
"We build stores of different sizes, often in deprived areas and on contaminated land others won't touch and parcel together sites so we can invest in town centres, always taking risks on planning approval."
Tesco is the UK's largest supermarket, with a market share of 30%.
The Competition Commission was unavailable for comment.
The Green Party's principal speaker, Derek Wall, said it was essential that the Competition Commission looked at the development land owned by the main supermarkets.
"With one in eight pounds spent in UK shops contributing to Tesco's profits, it's fatuous to pretend that they'd be surprised if the Competition Commission acts to hinder their monopolies growth," he said.

M&S poaches Tesco fashion boss
Lisa Buckingham & Lauren Mills, Mail on Sunday

In a breathtaking High Street coup, Marks & Spencer has poached Terry Green, head of clothing at Tesco, to head its increasingly successful fashion business.
A well-placed source told Financial Mail that M&S chief executive Stuart Rose had been in talks with Green, a friend and former colleague, for several months.
'They initially met to discuss the job just after Christmas,' said the source. Two further meetings, with M&S senior management, took place more recently.
The loss of Green will be a bitter blow to Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy. Just last November, Green set out ambitious plans for Tesco to topple High Street fashion giants M&S, Next and Topshop.
He said that Tesco would invest millions of pounds in an expanded range of edgier and upmarket clothing to be sold in specially designated areas within the stores.
Now Rose has poached the 56-year-old fashion industry veteran to help consolidate M&S's position as the country's favourite clothing retailer.
Green, who intends to hand in his notice to Leahy this week, is in Hong Kong, watching a rugby union tournament and was unavailable for comment.
Rose plans to put Green in charge of clothing. He will oversee Kate Bostock, director of womenswear, her menswear counterpart Julian Kilmartin and lingerie director Matthew Hudson. Sources say the move is expected to mean a substantial pay rise for Green.
Rose, who was pipped to the top job at Debenhams by Green when the pair worked together at Burtons in the Nineties, has long been impressed by his former colleague's record at Topshop, Debenhams and, most recently, Tesco.
'M&S plans to introduce some trendier ranges, particularly for young women, to tap into Topshop's success,' said a source, adding that Green's appointment was seen as pivotal to orchestrating the changes.
Green is a consultant at Tesco and not on the main board, so is expected to be able to move to M&S relatively swiftly. He joined the supermarket chain in September 2005, just eight months after presiding over the collapse of department store group Allders with the loss of 1,000 jobs. At the time, many feared it might mean the end of his career at the pinnacle of UK fashion retailing.
But Rose firmly believes Green's troubles are behind him. He wants a trusted lieutenant Tesco chief defects by his side after the departure in February last year of his friend Charles Wilson, who left to join cash-and-carry chain Booker.
M&S has been plagued by rumours of other high-level departures. Andrew Moore, the 49-year-old director of general merchandising, left in February and Anthony Thompson, M&S's retail director, was said to be looking at his options. Thompson, however, has so far been persuaded to stay.

The Scotsman

Tesco Thais up Far East expansion

TESCO, Britain's biggest retailer, is to extend its reach into Thailand with the addition of new hypermarkets and about 60 convenience stores.

The group, which already operates 260 Tesco Lotus convenience outlets, said it would spend just over 100 million on expanding in Thailand this year.

Darmp Sukontasap, a senior executive of Ek-Chai Distribution System, which operates the Tesco Lotus branches, declined to say how many hypermarkets were in the plan, or exactly how much it cost to open a standard 300 square metre Tesco Lotus Express convenience store.

HP- I purchased Tesco shares recently at 437p as a core investment. As you probably know W Buffet purchased an interest as he was impressed with the Management and good future prospects.He may well of had international expansion on his mind when using his 5 year prospect guide. If the market has another period of weakness I will add some more . Thanks for the information.

Final results next Tuesday. Expect more good news.

Telegraph. 15 April 2007
The Week Ahead: Tesco hits the West Coast. by Danny Fortson


Another year, another record for Tesco. At the retailing Goliath's annual results on Tuesday, stockbroker Charles Stanley expects chief executive Sir Terry Leahy to unveil 2.48bn in pre-tax profits, up from 2.23bn the year before.

The company's freight-train growth is not surprising. What the City will be eager to talk about is Tesco's expansion plans abroad, principally in China and the US. The retailer unveiled plans last year to open a chain of Tesco Express-style stores on the West Coast of America, wading into territory that has been a graveyard for most UK retailers that have tried to cross the Atlantic.

But with Warren Buffett, the billionaire US investor, having bought a big chunk of shares last year, it will be hard to bet against the company.

BBC. 17 April.

Britain's biggest retailer Tesco has reported 13% growth in full-year underlying profits of 2.55bn.

Its international strategy is going strongly with 8.2m square feet of new store space creating 18% growth in international sales.

The supermarket chain plans to create 25,000 new jobs worldwide this year.

Although Tesco has been expanding abroad, the lion's share of its profits still came from its UK network of more than 1,400 stores.

Tesco made profits of 139m from its property portfolio and now plans to expand the programme of realising profits from its property.

The company currently holds a 31.2% share of the UK grocery market, according to the latest figures from market researchers TNS.

It unveiled two new measures earlier this month to help increase the price UK dairy farmers receive for their milk.

Tesco also recently announced that its first US store would be based in the state of Arizona, trading under the Fresh & Easy brand.

Amid widespread media interest, the firm opened its first store under its own name in the Chinese capital Beijing in January.

AFX. 18 April


TOKYO (Thomson Financial) - Tesco PLC said it will open its first own-brand mini-supermarket in Japan next week, under the Tesco Express name.

The Tesco Express store will open its doors in Tokyo's Nerima ward on April 25, one of up to 35 new outlets the British supermarket giant plans to open this year in Japan.

Tesco currently operates 106 stores in Japan under the Tsurukame brand.

'The new stores represent the most compact version of the 'Tsurukame Land' food supermarkets we have been running,' said Tesco spokeswoman Shizuko Ota.

'They are not convenience stores. We position them as a small type of food supermarket,' she said.

Unlike many of the roughly 40,000 conveniences stores in Japan that operate round the clock, the new Tesco Express will be open from 7.00 am to 11.00 pm.

Tesco already employs 3,300 people in Japan, where it acquired 78 discount supermarkets, mostly in the Tokyo area, in 2003 through the acquisition of C Two-Network.

From The Times
April 18, 2007

Tesco to use property to enhance shareholder handouts. Sarah Butler


Tesco is set to cash in on the booming retail property market, with plans to refinance up to 2 billion more of its property portfolio than planned over the next five years and to double the amount returned to shareholders to 3 billion.
The move by Britains largest supermarket is likely to increase pressure on Sainsburys to refinance its property portfolio, a move for which Robert Tchenguiz, its minority shareholder, has been lobbying since the collapse of a 10 billion private equity bid.
One analyst said: This shows the strategic value of property assets.
Sir Terry Leahy, the Tesco chief, said: It is important to strike the right balance between returns today and value for future shareholders.
He said that Tesco wanted to keep the freehold on at least 70 per cent of its properties, so as to maintain long-term strategic strength. However, it had tried to show some of the hidden value within its portfolio by pointing out that its property was worth about 28 billion, 65 per cent more than the 17 billion registered in the supermarkets books.
A year ago Tesco announced plans to raise 5 billion through refinancing of its property assets, and to return 1.5 billion of that to shareholders.
Sir Terry said: Its a substantial store of value and its appropriate we release some of that.
He would not say whether any of the money raised through additional property sales would be invested in the company or exactly how much would be raised; this, he said, would depend on market conditions.
However, Andrew Higginson, the finance director, said that Tesco was not likely to raise more than about 2 billion more over its current five-year programme.
Tesco yesterday confirmed its strength with a 10.9 per cent rise in sales to 46.6 billion and a 13.2 per cent rise in underlying profit to 2.54 billion.
The supermarket also revealed a 5.8 per cent rise in underlying sales, slightly better than expected and up from the 4.4 per cent of the previous quarter. The supermarket said that growth was down to consumers spending more of their total cash on food.
Sir Terry said: I think we are seeing a fundamental change in consumer interest in food based on health.
He said that the number of customers buying at least some organic food had risen by a third to more than 40 per cent and that Tescos sales of these foods was now approaching 1 billion annually. Tesco also revealed strong sales of nonfood. In the UK alone, such sales rose by 11.6 per cent to 7.6 billion, including a 16 per cent rise in clothing sales. Consumer electronics rose by 35 per cent, helped by the launch of Tesco Direct.
Internationally, the supermarket showed stronger-than-expected growth despite continuing problems in Hungary, Thailand and South Korea.
Some analysts expressed disappointment that Tesco expected a loss of 65 million this year at its American business, which is expected to be launched this autumn. In the past year the venture cost Tesco about 20 million.
However, Sir Terry said that the start-up losses were in line with the companys strategy. The US is clearly an enormous part of the worlds spending power and a market you can grow in if you have something successful, he said. There is no shortage of retail space there, five times the amount per head then in the UK.


Petrol payout

Tesco said that it had paid 7 million to 8 million to compensate thousands of drivers whose cars were damaged by contaminated petrol sold in its forecourts. It said that it had settled 15,000 of 18,000 complaints made about the incident in February. Petrol from the Royal Vopak terminal at Thurrock used by a Tesco supplier was found to be contaminated with silicon.
Sir Terry Leahy, Tescos chief executive, said of the settlements: I think we have done a good job. The final cost was not yet clear because both Tesco and its supplier were still dealing with their insurers, he said.

From The Times
April 18, 2007

Shop smart: Tescos price may seem high, but its all relative. Robert Cole: Tempus


Tesco shares look expensive. But does that mean the stock should be sold? In a word, no.
Tesco shares trade on a historic price-to-earnings ratio of 21. This looks heady by almost all standards, and is certainly a long way ahead of the average London-listed share. The typical FTSE stock trades on an historic earnings multiple of 14. Dividend yield statistics paint a similar picture. Tesco shares give 1.96 per cent compared with a FTSE average of 2.76 per cent.
But as long as Tesco continues to produce financial results like the ones it posted yesterday, the shares will not actually be expensive, they will simply look expensive. They will only become expensive if, or when, momentum begins to leak away from the profits growth.
One oddity is that, while Tesco shares look pricey by most benchmarks, they appear cheap when set beside their closest peers. Shares in the FTSE food and drug retailing sector change hands at a whopping 30 times historic earnings and give a dividend yield of 1.9 per cent.
Takeover bid fever accounts for the super-premium rating of Tescos immediate peers. Peers trade on unusually generous ratings: the average historic price-to-earnings ratio for the food and drug retailing sector over the past ten years is one-third less than it is at present. But at Tesco, its price-to-earnings rating is more or less in line with the ten-year average. So, if shares in Tesco are expensive, it only reflects the prevailing conditions of the past decade.
If something does go wrong, the share-price reaction could be brutal, since the stock would be hit by the double-whammy of falling profits and a falling rating. But what could go wrong? There are three key risks. The first is that customers in Tescos domestic UK market will turn against the company, either directly or through the proxy of the competition authorities. The second is that Tesco will get into trouble on the international side. The third is that the management team, led in exemplary fashion by Sir Terry Leahy, the chief executive, somehow loses its thread. It is alarmingly easy to see Tesco come a cropper at the hands of each of these. And it is not that hard to imagine all three arriving in tandem. But the key consideration is that, while it is possible to imagine that Tesco might endure a reversal in fortunes, there is little evidence that it is running into serious difficulty.
The fuel fiasco earlier this year created a headache. Some of Tescos fledgeling international ventures are loss-making, too. As Tesco gets progressively larger in the UK, growth will get harder to come by. But the difficulties pale in significance beside the bigger story, which is that Tescos success continues to outweigh by far its failures. Yesterdays decision to double the share buyback programme is one sure sign of the success.

Buy.

The Herald. PAUL ROGERSON, City Editor. April 18 2007

High streets juggernaut rolls onward


Supermarket juggernaut Tesco said yesterday it planned to increase the number of its Scottish scores to more than 100 this year, as it underlined its dominance of the UK retail market with another set of record results.
Planning consent has been obtained for five more outlets - at Maryhill in Glasgow, Port Glasgow, Lockerbie, Buckie in Banffshire, and North Berwick.
Up to 1000 jobs are expected to be created north of the border in the next 12 months, the company said. These will be added to the 1200 Scottish posts Tesco said it created in 2006/07, when the company opened five shops in Scotland.
Tesco owns some 2000 stores in 13 countries, including 1500 in the UK, where it employs 260,000 people.
Group sales rose 10.9% to 46.6bn in the year to February 24, broadly in line with analyst expectations. Underlying profit rose 13.2% to 2.55bn, while UK trading profits were 1.91bn - 9.2% ahead of the previous year.
The full-year dividend was raised by 11.7% to 9.64p per share.
The company also announced a doubling in the amount of cash it plans to return to shareholders, pledging to return at least 3bn from property sales to investors, up from 1.5bn previously.

Chief executive Terry Leahy brushed aside criticism about the group's dominance in the UK, where Tesco controls more than a third of the grocery market, describing the company as a "significant British success story". This did not spare the company from the critical flak it generally receives at results time, however.
Danny Alexander, the LibDem MP for Inverness, where Tesco has a 51% market share, said: "Tesco's enormous profits underscore the need for the Competition Commission to propose tough action to curb the dominance of supermarkets in local markets such as Inverness.
"Local dominance has a negative impact on smaller shops, on suppliers and, ultimately, on consumers. As competition falls away, so the power of the dominant player increases."
The commission is investigating the UK's 95bn grocery sector after the Office of Fair Trading found evidence to suggest some supermarket chains were using large land banks to stop rival retailers opening outlets.
Friends of the Earth campaigner Vicki Hird accused the chain of "driving high street stores out of existence".
She said: "The time has come to put the brakes on the Tesco juggernaut and curb its power."

Tesco appears to be coping well with a growing challenge from nearest rivals Asda and a resurgent J Sainsbury.
Like-for-like UK sales, excluding fuel, rose 5.8% in the final quarter of the year. This was an improvement on a third-quarter rise of 5.6%.
Strong fourth-quarter growth at home allayed fears Tesco is losing ground to those rivals, Seymour Pierce analyst Richard Ratner said.
Leahy said Tesco's much-heralded entry into the US, its biggest forecast foray this year after opening its first own-brand stores in China in 2006, is on track. He reiterated the company's plans to break even in the US in its third financial year of operation.

Richard Hunter, head of UK equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers, said: "It certainly seems as though the world is Tesco's oyster at the moment. Without taking its eyes off the core UK market - where all the key performance indicators continue their inexorable growth - the success of its international division continues apace."

AFX. 19 April

Tesco plans Guangzhou HQ to boost south China expansion - report


BEIJING (XFN-ASIA) - UK retailer Tesco PLC has set up a regional headquarters in Guangzhou, to help boost the group's presence in southern China, the China Business News reported, citing a company source.

The group already has three stores in south China, out of a total of 47 in the country, the newspaper reported.

Tesco entered China by acquiring a 90 pct stake in Hymall, a grocery brand formerly run by Taiwan's Ting Hsin International Group.

Just a reminder that we go ex-dividend next Wednesday (25th April).

Dividend payout is 6.83pence per share.

Food retailers safe bets as pound gains

LONDON (Reuters) - Shares in food retailers are safe bets for investors worried by the prospect of sterling above $2, analysts say.

The Scotsman. April 21st.

Theory suggests we're heading for a depression

ON 13 March 2003, the FTSE All-Share index hit 1,676.6, the IT-driven peaks of three years before a distant and frustrating memory. Just a few days ago this key benchmark broke through to more than 3,380, a rise of 100 per cent. True, this advance has not been without interruption, punctuated, in fact, by two particularly sharp corrections, in May last year and February this year, but these were as short-lived as that most spectacular of all "panics" in recent memory, that of October 1987. To an extent, market trends are the source rather than as the result of opinion, extending onwards until reality is suspended, at which point, like that cartoon Coyote suspended over the canyon pedalling furiously, a glance below triggers nemesis.

Although I am no chartist, the structure of a market often follows a distinct pattern, an initial sharp reaction followed by an equally robust change in direction, which persuades the majority that the original trend has been re-established and then a more sustained secondary pattern which, in turn, carries the conviction of permanence. In truth, there are two fundamental aspects of any market trend. One is the belief by the majority that "this time is different" and two, that it is not. In fact, the phrase "this time is different" is almost as depressing as Evelyn Waugh's dislike of "red or white?" or "shall we go straight in?" Personally, I suffer a serious nervous reaction to the news from my IT department that "we have upgraded your systems".

The trouble with cycles is that one is never very sure when they started and, as a result, they can only really be judged retrospectively. In 1923, Joseph Kitchen announced his discovery of a 41-month cycle, while the French economist Clement Juglar, who died in 1905, identified a seven to 11-year business evolution. Perhaps the most famous was the Kondratieff theory on wave cycle, "discovered" by the Russian Professor Nikolai Kondratieff and whose cycles are supposed to last anything between 45 to 60 years. Prof Kondratieff helped to develop the first post-revolutionary Soviet five-year plan. In his findings, he suggested that there were four distinct phases: beneficial inflation; stagflation; beneficial deflation and deflation. Unfortunately - for him - his work and conclusions were seen as a criticism of Joseph Stalin and he ended up dying in a gulag in 1938. Based on his theories, however, there was a period of beneficial inflation between 1949 to 1966, stagflation between 1966 and 1982, and beneficial deflation between 1982 and 2000.

We are now in that fourth stage, a deflation cycle which should lead to a depression. Prof Kondratieff was building on the premise promoted by Juglar, who suggested that growth periods usually ended in a spectacular collapse of the proverbial bubble, with the consequential need of a purging of the system to restore reason.

It seems to me that we are depressingly close to just such a climax, depressing, that is, for one who makes a living out of investment markets; as Butch Cassidy said to the Sundance Kid: "You know kid, for a gun fighter you're a helluva pessimist!" The human condition is prone to irrational enthusiasm, which can overwhelm anything from a playground to a lynch mob. Peering into the investment market pond today suggests that the entire piscatorial shoal is engaged in a cycle of mutual ingestation, which can only lead to an acute attack of indigestion. I am not saying there are no investment opportunities to be had but, when you have central bankers still obsessed by inflationary pressures which are as much as anything else a consequence of political initiatives or acts of the Almighty - high oil prices (Iraq and tax) - high food prices (hot weather) - and not from avaricious wage demands or spectacular speculative consumption binges, then there are problems on the horizon for us all, and especially for those who succumb to banks lending mortgages on an income multiple of six.

As Euripides said: "Whom the Gods would destroy, they first make mad."

Bryan Johnston is a director of Bell Lawrie in Edinburgh.

The Herald. 30 April
PAUL ROGERSON, City Editor

SNP says Tesco Law is not suited to Scottish society

SNP justice spokesman Kenny MacAskill has said the party will not seek to introduce so-called "Tesco Law" north of the border, should it take power at Holyrood.

He was commenting on the party's policies towards the legal profession, which are broadly outlined in its election manifesto.

South of the border, of course, external investors such as supermarkets and banks are being allowed to own and run law firms for the first time. Practices will also be able to float and appoint non-lawyer partners, and English barristers and solicitors will be able to form partnerships.

"MacClementi", a working party report on Scotland's legal services market commissioned by the Scottish Executive and published early last year, was widely viewed as a damp squib in respect of opening up the market to greater competition. This has split the profession, with some eminent lawyers in favour of the new freedoms and others hostile.

Asked if he would seek to legislate to allow any or all of the freedoms enshrined under the general term "Tesco Law", MacAskill responded: "Further investigation is needed. Tesco Law is to be avoided as it would not suit Scottish society. However, some opportunity for successful Scottish firms to compete globally is appropriate."

MacAskill did give a commitment to implement fully reforms scrapping self-regulation enshrined in the recently passed Legal Profession and Legal Aid (Scotland) Bill, including the creation of an independent Scottish Legal Complaints Commission to address complaints of poor service by lawyers.

Some consumers have expressed concern about his commitment to that cause, since he himself is a qualified solicitor and was a partner in an Edinburgh law firm until 2000.

Asked if the SNP was committed to the full implementation of the bill as recently passed by parliament, however, MacAskill answered with a simple "yes". He said he has no plans to alter any aspect of the reforms. The SNP is taking a cautious line on the vexed issue of Scotland's shockingly low threshold for small claims. It is now nine years since it was recommended that the limit be lifted to 1500 from 750, but nothing has been done.

Scottish consumer groups continue to despair that for people wanting compensation from a supplier of shoddy goods or services without the expense of hiring a lawyer, the effective maximum is 750 - less than the cost of a plasma TV. That limit has been frozen for 19 years, whereas in England and Wales the small claims ceiling is 5000 and has been since 1999.

According to consumer organisation Which?, some despairing Scots who can do so, choose to pursue their cases in the English courts. Julia Clarke, public affairs officer for Which? in Scotland, has described the Executive's failure to act as a "charter for cowboys".

Personal injury claims are to be excluded from increases in the small claims threshold if and when the Executive does act. That much is clear.

Opponents of higher limits, however, which include trade unions, allege that more radical action would deny legal redress to thousands of Scots by taking them out of the legal aid net.

Others make dark allegations of protectionism, stressing that a rise would enable more people to go to court without having to pay a solicitor. Asked if the SNP will be increasing the small claims limit and, if so, to what level and when, MacAskill responded: "A root-and-branch reform is needed for a system unfit for 21st century society.

"The protection of those pursuing personal injury claims must be assured.

However, a faster and more streamlined system must be available for minor consumer and other small claims."

The Guardian
Julia Finch. Monday April 30, 2007

Wanted: 100 Tesco shareholders to push for a better deal for suppliers


A small shareholder in Tesco is canvassing support to force the supermarket to adopt higher standards in its dealings with suppliers in low-wage countries.

Ben Birnberg, company secretary at aid charity War on Want, is attempting to track down 100 like-minded Tesco shareholders, who must have holdings currently valued at some 9,300 each, to back a resolution he hopes to put to the grocer's annual meeting at the end of June.

The resolution would oblige Tesco to appoint independent auditors to ensure that workers in its supplier factories are guaranteed "decent working conditions, a living wage, job security" and the right to join a trade union of their choice.

The issue prompted an exchange of letters in the Guardian last week. In the first, Mr Birnberg spelled out why he thought Tesco should make higher standards a priority. He pointed out that in its annual review last year the grocer boasted of its "market leading package of pay and benefits". The grocer also stated that it believed in "treating our partners as we like to be treated" and was keen "to uphold labour standards in the supply chain".

Tesco's director of legal affairs, Lucy Neville-Rolfe, then responded and said it would be easier for Tesco to stop sourcing from countries with economic and social problems that Tesco cannot fix but that trade was the right way to help lift developing countries out of poverty.

Mr Birnberg wrote back, insisting the issue "is not trade or no trade" but why Tesco would try to block a resolution designed to ensure higher standards if it "is genuine about its ethical pretensions".

Before contacting the Guardian, Mr Birnberg had written to Tesco to ask if the directors would demonstrate their commitment to ethical sourcing by backing his resolution and circulating it to investors.

Tesco's company secretary, Jonathan Lloyd, refused, claiming it was "not valid under the relevant rules". Mr Birnberg said the company could not be compelled to circulate a resolution, but the directors could have done so of their own volition.

Now, however, he is attempting to use force. Under section 376 of the Companies Act a shareholder can move a resolution if they hold at least 5% of the share capital or have the support of at least 100 other shareholders who each hold an average of shares with a paid-up value of 100 (This reflects the shares' nominal value as stated on the share certificate). At Friday's share price that would mean each of them having to hold about 9,300 worth of shares .

A spokesman for Tesco said: "If these suppliers weren't supplying to the export market they would have to supply to the domestic market, and then the conditions would be much worse."

A recent War on Want report on workers in Bangladesh producing clothes for stores like Tesco, Primark and Asda found evidence that the mainly female workforce was being paid as little as 5p an hour and working up to 80 hours a week.

Last week a report by Action Aid found further evidence of workers at overseas suppliers to UK supermarkets being paid poverty wages to work in appalling conditions. The report also focused on the women working in Bangladesh, cashew nut processors in India and banana workers in Costa Rica.

AFX - 12.28pm. Tuesday 1st May


LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Tesco PLC faces disruption after drivers at its distribution depot at Livingston in Scotland voted to strike in a dispute relating to the supermarket giant's plans to re-draw terms and conditions when they relocate their distribution depot to a site only 500 yards away from the existing one.

The Transport and General Workers Union (T&G) today confirmed the ballot result but said no dates for action have been set whilst talks with Tesco continue.

In a high turnout ballot, in which over 92 pct of the drivers took part, 95.5 pct voted in favour of strike action. In a second question on taking industrial action short of a full strike, 94.7 per cent were in favour.

This vote shows how strongly drivers feel about the situation, said Tony Trench, T&G's regional industrial organiser and spokesman for the drivers.

In a statement, the T&G said it began talks with Tesco through Acas yesterday in an attempt to find a resolution. Negotiations will continue into next week and the union will not name any dates for strikes or any other form of industrial action while they are in process.

The T&G drivers recently received backing from the Scottish TUC, and the union at a national level is preparing a campaign across the distribution depots.

Scotsman

MPs support Tesco drivers in strike row

TESCO delivery drivers in the midst of a strike ballot have won the support of a group of MPs.

Workers are furious at new terms the supermarket plans to impose, which they claim amount to major pay cuts.

Livingston MP Jim Devine has tabled an early day motion at Westminster on the situation faced by workers at Tesco's huge West Lothian base. It has been supported by five other Labour MPs including Linlithgow and East Falkirk's Michael Connarty and East Lothian's Anne Moffat.

The motion reads: "We express deep concern that drivers at the Tesco depot in Livingston have been threatened with dismissal unless they sign up to new terms proposed by the company. We urge Tesco to come back to open meaningful negotiations."

The real problem will come if the strike spreads to all depots across the UK.

The Independent. 04 May 2007.

Watchdog investigates Tesco telecoms complaints. By Nic Fildes


Ofcom is investigating Tesco's telecoms division after customers complained that the supermarket had switched their telecoms services without consent and had then refused to cancel the orders.

Ofcom noted that over recent months there was a significant increase in the number of customers cancelling requests to switch to Tesco Telecoms. After receiving complaints from consumers, it will investigate whether the supermarket has been mis-selling its service by switching customers against their wishes.

Ofcom will also investigate customer complaints that Tesco refused to cancel orders on request, meaning the customer was forced to contact their existing telecoms supplier to stop the order. Customers that choose to switch telecoms supplier have a 10-day "cooling off" period in which they can cancel orders primarily to stop mis-selling. Tesco blamed the problems on a billing system and denied it had deliberately mis-sold.

A Tesco spokesperson said: "We very much regret that some customers have experienced difficulties in trying to cancel their transfer, but of course we would never knowingly miss-sell any product. The problems were down to a change in billing systems which led to delays and a breakdown in communications with... customers. These issues are now largely resolved."

The investigation could take months and Tesco could face a hefty fine if it is found to have mis-sold products. The maximum fine is 10 per cent of the unit's revenue. Ofcom is also investigating the Post Office over alleged mis-selling of its phone services.

Evening Standard. 4 May 2007. Jonathan Prynn

Tesco faces phone line sale probe


Tesco is being investigated over claims that it mis-sold fixed-line phone contracts.
Industry regulator Ofcom said it will examine whether the supermarket's offshoot Tesco Telecoms had broken its code of practice.

It follows complaints that the company signed up customers without their full consent and failed to cancel orders when customers requested it, as it is legally obliged to do.

In some cases people complained they were forced to contact their existing supplier to prevent the transfer of service to Tesco Telecoms.

A Tesco spokesman said: 'We would never knowingly missell any product.

'The problems were down to a change in billing systems which led to delays and a breakdown in communications with customers.'

Tesco Telecoms could face a fine of up to 10% of its revenue if it is found to have mis-sold products.

Scotsman

MPs support Tesco drivers in strike row

TESCO delivery drivers in the midst of a strike ballot have won the support of a group of MPs.

Workers are furious at new terms the supermarket plans to impose, which they claim amount to major pay cuts.

Livingston MP Jim Devine has tabled an early day motion at Westminster on the situation faced by workers at Tesco's huge West Lothian base. It has been supported by five other Labour MPs including Linlithgow and East Falkirk's Michael Connarty and East Lothian's Anne Moffat.

The motion reads: "We express deep concern that drivers at the Tesco depot in Livingston have been threatened with dismissal unless they sign up to new terms proposed by the company. We urge Tesco to come back to open meaningful negotiations."

Evening Standard - 8 May 2007 - Jonathan Prynn

Rogue fuel costs Tesco 8m


Tesco has paid out 8m to motorists who bought contaminated fuel earlier this year, it emerged today.
The supermarket giant said it had acted quickly to reimburse about 18,000 victims, mostly in the South-East.
Drivers' cars developed faults after filling up at Tesco and Morrisons forecourts across the region about two months ago.
Many said their vehicles started 'kangaroo jumping' or ground to a halt shortly after taking on the petrol. Most of the affected motors suffered damaged sensors, which are used to regulate emissions, with repair bills ranging from 200 to 1,000.

The fuel was found to have been contaminated by high levels of silicon and the rogue batch was traced to a storage depot in the Thurrock area of Essex.
Tesco apologised after tests showed it had sold the contaminated fuel. A spokesman yesterday said the 'vast majority' of compensation claims had now been settled.
Morrisons also said it had dealt with 94 % of claims, but refused to say how much it had paid out in compensation or the number of drivers receiving payouts.

Investigations are still ongoing as to how the fuel became contaminated although the storage company is not thought to be held responsible.

From The Times - May 9, 2007 - Sarah Butler

New clampdown will make it tougher for Tesco in Thailand


Tesco may face renewed difficulties in Thailand after the countrys military-installed Government endorsed a new law intended to curb the expansion of foreign retailers.
The new legislation, which needs further approvals before it comes into force, would create a central body, to be called the Retail and Wholesale Supervision Committee, to regulate retail businesses nationwide.
That body would take its lead from provincial governments, which would assess and approve or reject plans for any new supermarkets in their area.
Oranuj Osathananda, the Deputy Commerce Minister, said: The new law approved today will decentralise authority to provincial regulators and allow greater hearing of public opinion.
If retailers go against the verdict of provincial authorities or violate the law in any other way, they would face up to three years in jail or fines of three million baht (46,000).
The Government is also taking tougher measures to enforce city zoning laws in order to slow the expansion of foreign retailers.

Tesco has had a difficult time in Thailand since a military coup late last year, which led to restrictions on expansion plans in one of the chains most successful overseas markets.
The company was forced to temporarily halt the expansion of its chain of small convenience stores and only recently reactivated the programme.
The Commerce Ministry has claimed that more than 100,000 small shops have been forced to shut over the past decade due to rapid expansion of large retail chains.
A Tesco spokesman said: We are still waiting to see the details, but there appears to be no mention of Thai consumers and we would ask the Government to consider how this law will benefit them.
This is just the first step in the process and we will continue to work with the Government to explain the benefits that modern retail brings to Thai consumers and suppliers. He said that such issues were bound to occur occasionally for a business that was operating in a number of different markets around the world.
The important thing is that we have a strong business in Thailand which is popular with our customers, the spokesman said.

The proposed law will be sent next to the nations top legal experts before being submitted once again to the military-appointed parliament for final endorsement.

BANGKOK (XFN-ASIA) - Thailand's military-installed government endorsed a new retail law aimed at reining in the expansion of major foreign retail companies after an outcry by local shop owners. Under the new law, local governments would assess and approve any proposed new branches of supermarket chains in their province. A new central body -- the Retail and Wholesale Supervision Committee chaired by the commerce minister -- would also be set up to regulate the retail business nationwide. The retail measure was initially rejected by the cabinet, which complained that the central committee would have too much authority to regulate retailers, but the cabinet gave a revised version its approval.

'Instead of having only one central regulator, the new law approved today will decentralize authority to provincial regulators and allow greater hearing of public opinion,' said deputy commerce minister Oranuj Osathananda.

Supermarket chains, mostly foreign-owned groups like British company Tesco Plc and France's Carrefour SA, have been locked in a row with the government and small stores, which complain the big retailers are driving them out of business. More than 100,000 small shops have shut over the last decade due to rapid expansion of the chains, the commerce ministry has said. If the retail majors go against the verdict of provincial authorities or violate the law in any other way, they would face up to three years in jail or fines of 3 mln baht under the bill.

The law will now be sent to the nation's top legal experts before being submitted once again to the junta-appointed parliament for final endorsement. In the meantime, the government will toughen its enforcement of existing zoning laws to slow the expansion of foreign retailers, a spokesman said. 'It will take some time before the retail law takes effect,' deputy government spokeswoman Netpreeya Chumchaiyo told reporters. 'To immediately reduce impacts from rapid expansion of foreign retailers, the cabinet agreed to tighten the existing city zoning rules to regulate retail business first.'

Tesco Union Calls for Strike Ballot to Support Scottish Drivers - By Lenka Ponikelska


May 22 (Bloomberg) -- Tesco Plc union members are calling for a ballot on strike action in support of Scottish drivers of the supermarket company.

The Transport and General Workers branch of the Unite union says it will call a ballot of drivers at Tesco's U.K. distribution depots in support of 150 drivers at a Scottish depot who already plan to strike from May 24 to 26 over changes to pay and working conditions.

``Tesco is wrong to say the dispute is just about how people are paid. It is about losses of between 3,000 pounds ($5,915) and 6,000 pounds a year which are at issue along with losing the protection of their union,'' Ron Webb, T&G section of Unite national secretary for transport, said in an e-mailed statement.

The T&G section of Unite, which represents 5,000 workers at Tesco's main distribution depots, have not set a date for a ballot.

Tesco earlier said in an e-mailed statement that it will ``do everything in our power to ensure that the actions of a minority of staff will not disrupt the service we provide and cause inconvenience to our customers.''

not looking good

The Observer - Sunday May 27, 2007 - Oliver Morgan

Tesco braced for drivers' strike


Tesco may face empty shelves and widespread supply disruption as its distribution drivers prepare for a national strike ballot this week. The move by Unite, the merged Transport and General Workers and Amicus unions, follows a walkout over pay and recognition at a Tesco depot at Livingston in Scotland last week. There was a 126 to six vote in favour of strike action at Livingston on a 90 per cent turnout. The T&G claimed last week's action, from Thursday to Saturday, meant only 25 per cent of normal truckloads left the depot, although Tesco said operations ran normally. The union says that unless Tesco changes its stance on new contractual conditions and the derecognition of Unite at the new depot it will announce a nationwide ballot of some 5,000 drivers across five other depots on Wednesday. Ron Webb, the T&G/Unite national secretary for transport, said: 'We will inform the company of our intention this week unless they make a U-turn.' Unite's grievances relate to contract changes accompanying a move to a new Livingston depot which introduced new shift patterns, meaning losses to some drivers of up to 6,000 in overtime and other payments. Tesco has confirmed it has a single union agreement with Usdaw, the shop workers' union, at the site.

BBC - Saturday, 26 May 2007

Tesco has apologised for a mistake over corn-fed chickens


Tesco has apologised for selling chicken labelled as corn-fed which had not eaten enough maize to meet minimum requirements. The supermarket called it a "completely unacceptable" mistake, caused by a farmer accidentally giving his birds the wrong feed. The apology comes after tests were carried out on chicken sold by six supermarkets and department stores. Tesco also confirmed that no affected chickens remained on sale. The tests were organised by the Times newspaper, which reported that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Central Science Laboratory in York had found the Tesco chicken "was not in keeping with EU regulations". All the other chicken samples tested were found to justify being sold as corn-fed. Defra's website states that the term "corn-fed" means the feed formula given during the larger part of the chicken's fattening period must contain at least 50% maize. A Tesco spokesman said: "The integrity of our food is our greatest concern at Tesco. "We conducted an immediate investigation and we have already determined that for a short time the farmer concerned inadvertently fed standard free-range feed - which does contain corn - to his chickens instead of the free-range feed that contains sufficient corn to satisfy Defra standards. "While this only happened for a short period of time, it is completely unacceptable to us and to our customers.

"We apologise for what appears to be a case of human error at a supplier that services different retailers."

Tom McGhie, Financial Mail - 27 May 2007

Strike may empty Tesco shelves


Leaders of Unite, the country's largest union, plan to ballot members next week in a dispute over changes in contracts for their members at Tesco's depot in Livingston, West Lothian. Livingston's Labour MP, Jim Devine, called for a one-day boycott of Tesco for threatening to sack drivers who refused to sign new contracts. The drivers, who earn up to 25,000 a year, walked out on Thursday and were due to return to work today. The union said the new contracts would mean workers losing between 3,000 and 6,000 a year and the derecognition of the union. The changes are being implemented during the move of the depot 500 yards down the road.

According to union organisers, only 25% of the normal consignments of groceries and supplies were leaving the Livingston depot as the strike started to bite. It also said that the prospect of a national ballot was very real. Ron Webb, the union's national secretary for transport, who was on the picket line at Livingston last week, said: 'As things stand, we'll be starting a national ballot of our members across the other distribution sites. 'Tesco is being hit by the Livingston strike and is in denial about what it is all about. We will start the national ballot unless the company commits to meaningful talks.'

Tesco denied that any drivers were losing their jobs and instead claimed that jobs were being created. It said that 450 of the 600 workers had accepted the deal. Distribution director Laurie McIlwee said that there would be no change to the contractual pay of any driver who moved from the old contract to the new one.




TESCO'S latest womenswear collection has come under fire for being too expensive and unfashionable, writes Teena Lyons. A report from analyst firm Piper Jaffray said that Tesco's prices were 48% more expensive than Asda's and 56% dearer than Primark's. It also said that the range was 'unable to fully interpret and exploit key fashion trends'. Tesco's Terry Green disputed the claims and said: 'We are looking at the more aspirational market.'

Hey, e t, any danger of you posting a positive story about this company?

Tesco's warning from US unions !!!

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Tesco Outperforms FTSE After Surprise Garden Center Bid

Link Here

You're obviously not tuned in -

"Sir Tom Hunter thought to be in last-ditch talks with rival retailers to see if he can find a way to scupper Tesco's 156 million takeover of Dobbies"

- which means, if Tesco wants Dobbies it will cost them a lot more than is presently on the table.

Sir Tom Hunter, the Scottish entrepreneur, is forming a consortium to mount a counter-bid for Dobbies

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He has also got a little time to mull his options. It is 21 days from last Friday to the first closing date for the Tesco bid.

TICK TOCK TICK TOCK :)

TESCO delivery drivers involved in a three-day strike earlier this month have done a U-turn and accepted new terms and conditions.

All of the 70 workers who refused to agree the new deal over fears that overtime and other payments would be lost changed their minds over the weekend and yesterday.

http://news.scotsman.com/edinburgh.cfm?id=917662007

I am a shareholder.

Tesco is a superb company with a social conscience and should be seen as the best example of food and other consumer goods retailing.

All shareholder should support the board and oppose any rediculous suggestion otherwise.

If only the politicians could run our govenment as wisely and efficiently.---If only.

i say fuck the estate agents..hope tesco wipe the crooks out