Tesco has cemented its position as Britain's biggest supermarket with a new market share high.

The supermarket giant saw its market share grow to 28.1%, its highest since December 2017, while sales rose by 5.2% in the 12 weeks to December 1, according to the latest data from Kantar.

Sainsbury's increased its share to 15.9%, with sales up by 4.7%. The two retailers now account for 44% of the UK supermarket market, as reported by Retail Gazette.

Discounter Lidl posted a 6.6% rise in sales, while Asda's market share continued to fall, with a 3.5% fall in year-on-year sales.

And Kantar has revealed that total supermarket spend is set to top £13bn for the first time during December.

The retail analysts revealed that sales of supermarkets' premium own-label products have already risen and the proportion of spending on these items is expected to hit nearly 7% by the end of December.

Monday, December 23 is expected to be the busiest day for supermarkets this year, although Christmas food shopping has already started for many.

Kantar reported that sales of assorted sweet biscuits and biscuits for cheese doubled in November, and 8% of consumers have already bought a Christmas pudding.

It said the festive period is also driving up demand for non-grocery items in the supermarkets, with sales of general merchandise predicted to see a significant rise. Spending on these items in December 2023 was up 21% compared to the monthly average.

Last month, workers at Tesco in Gloucester talked to Punchline-Gloucester.com about abuse of retail staff.