Tesco continues to focus on Fresh & Easy

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Tesco said it is turning its attention to its U.S. supermarket chain, according to the company's annual report.

According to the company, despite the fact that its U.S. operations, which include its Fresh & Easy supermarket chain, have been slower to recover when compared with its European counterparts, Tesco said, "We are now seeing signs of improvement. ... Customer feedback at Fresh & Easy remains excellent, and strong growth in customer numbers is driving steady sales improvement in each store."

Tesco's U.S. sales raked in about $828 million during the 2010-2011 financial year, according to the report. Tesco also said that while "[we] plan to accelerate the rate of new store openings to around 50 in the current year, ... we now expect to break even with around 300 stores rather than the 400 we originally anticipated."

In April, Fresh & Easy, which operates stores in California, Arizona and Nevada, endured a loss of more than $300 million during the 2010-2011 financial year ended Feb. 26.

In April, Fresh & Easy, which operates stores in California, Arizona and Nevada, endured a loss of more than $300 million during the 2010-2011 financial year ended Feb. 26.