Tesco Broadens Guidance as Iran War Uncertainty Clouds Outlook

By Aimee Look

Tesco said it was issuing broader guidance for the fiscal year than it had planned due to heightened uncertainty stemming from the war in Iran, with inflation driven by the conflict expected to weigh on consumer spending.

The U.K. grocer said Thursday that it expects adjusted operating profit of 3 billion pounds to 3.3 billion pounds ($4.07 billion to $4.48 billion) for the 2027 fiscal year. For the 53 weeks ending Feb. 28, adjusted operating profit was 3.19 billion pounds.

"Much will depend upon the duration of the conflict and in particular, the potential implications for UK households and the economy more broadly," the company said.

It also said it is targeting an additional 500 million pounds in savings for the year.

Tesco holds the highest market share in the U.K. grocery sector, according to data from Worldpanel. It has nearly double the market share of the next largest British supermarket, Sainsbury's.

But an uptick in inflation due to the war is broadly expected to hike up costs and weigh on consumer spending habits.

The U.K.'s Food and Drink Federation said it expects food inflation to reach 9% to 10% by the end of the year due to the war, triple its previous estimate of ending the year around 3.2%.

Write to Aimee Look at aimee.look@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 16, 2026 03:28 ET (07:28 GMT)