Tesco Reports £6.4 Billion Loss

Tesco, the UK’s largest supermarket chain reported a loss of £6.4 billion for 2014, the largest loss in the history of the FTSE100.  The loss was driven by a £4.7 billion write down in the company’s property portfolio and a further £0.9 billion goodwill impairment in relation to its Chinese business. The major UK supermarket chains have suffered as a result of deflation in the global economy and increased competition from budget chains Aldi and Lidl. Earlier in 2014, Tesco issued a profit warning following accounting irregularities and the share price has dropped by more than 30% since that time.