Sainsbury's plunged into a net loss in the first half on costly store closures, the British supermarket said Thursday - and after it recently failed to merge with Walmart-owned Asda.
Sainsbury's chalked up a loss after tax of £38 million ($49 million, 44 million euros) in the 28 weeks to September 21, the retailer said in a trading update.
That contrasted with net profit of £123 million a year earlier.
Pre-tax profit nosedived 92 percent to £9.0 million.
Sainsbury's, the nation's second biggest supermarket company after retail king Tesco, said Thursday that it took a £203-million charge in the first half, mostly owing to store closures. Sainsbury's recently outlined plans to strip out £500 million in costs over the next five years.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2019