Supermarkets beef up advertising

MORRISONS, Sainsbury and Asda have all ramped up advertising this year in an attempt to lure shoppers - yet they are still losing ground to Tesco.

Sainsbury shelled out more cash than any of its rivals, though the most marked increase in expenditure comes from struggling Morrisons following its purchase of Safeway.

The Bradford-based chain spent £5.1m on advertising in the first quarter, according to data from Thomson Intermedia. This is more than double the £2.28m it spent last year, though still far less than the other big chains.

Morrisons' sales are still falling but thrifty boss Sir Ken Morrison must promote the brand to shoppers in the South, who may never have seen a Morrisons store before.

Sainsbury, Britain's third-largest supermarket chain, spent £11m in the first quarter, up from £9.9m last year. Chief executive Justin King is going hell for leather to persuade shoppers to come back, having slashed 8,000 prices.

Asda - which will axe up to 600 head-office jobs today - raised its spend from £7.7m to £9.3m. It is trying to counter a stagnation in sales, but could be overtaken by Sainsbury before the end of the year. Market leader Tesco spent £7.4m, down from £7.5m last year.