Lidl and Ocado have continued to experience the highest growth among UK retailers, with sales increasing by 11.4% and 14.3%, respectively over the last 12 weeks, according to the latest figures from NielsenIQ (NIQ).

M&S, Sainsbury’s and Aldi saw their sales increase by 8.5%, 5.6% and 5.2%, respectively. Meanwhile, supermarket retailers Tesco, Waitrose and Iceland recorded sales growth of 5%, 4.6% and 3.5%, respectively.

Morrisons experienced modest sales growth of 1.1%, while Asda’s sales declined by 3.2% and Co-op’s sales went down by 1.7%.

The back-to-school season and preparations for Christmas drove higher retail activity, with total till sales at UK supermarkets increasing by 4.1% in the last four weeks, compared to 3.7% in the month prior.

Mike Watkins, head of retailer and business insight at NielsenIQ, said: “Following the hottest summer on record, which encouraged spending and sustained food and drink sales, the industry now faces the challenge of navigating higher inflation.

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“As households switch their heating back on and prepare for additional spending ahead of Christmas, most consumers anticipate that financial pressures are set to increase further.”

The data also showed in-store visits increased by 4.8%, and online shopping grew by 1.9%. In particular, sales of meat, fish, and poultry rose by 9.2%, and soft drinks were in strong demand with a 10.6% growth rate due to the warm weather at the end of August.

Watkins added: “For retailers, three key challenges lie ahead: securing sales growth in the face of rising inflation to drive volume, encouraging ‘trading up’ across different shopping missions, and ensuring that media messages and forthcoming advertising campaigns resonate with increasingly price-sensitive consumers.”