British shoppers and motorists would be worse off if Sainsbury’s and Asda, two of the country’s largest supermarkets, were merged, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said In its final report on the issue released recently. This is due to expected price rise, reductions in product quality and range or a poorer overall shopping experience.
The deal would result in a substantial lessening of competition at both the national and local levels for people shopping in supermarkets, a group of independent CMA panel members concluded after an in-depth investigation.British shoppers and motorists would be worse off if Sainsbury's and Asda, two of the country's largest supermarkets, were merged, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said In its final report on the issue released recently. This is due to expected price rise, reductions in product quality and range or a poorer overall shopping experience.#
This would mean shoppers across the United Kingdom would be affected, not just in the areas where Sainsbury’s and Asda stores overlap, according to a UK Government press release.
“We have concluded that there is no effective way of addressing our concerns, other than to block the merger,” Stuart McIntosh, chair of the inquiry group, said.
The CMA’s investigation found the merger would lead to motorists paying more at over 125 locations where Sainsbury’s and Asda petrol stations are located close together.
The CMA is the UK’s primary competition and consumer authority. It is an independent non-ministerial government department with responsibility for carrying out investigations into mergers, markets and the regulated industries and enforcing competition and consumer law. (DS)
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