Amid cost-of-living crunch, Coles earns union’s ire after showing off whopping $1.1bn profit
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Despite working hard to make ends meet, more Aussies are finding themselves unable to buy food to put on the dinner table.
While households across the country crumble under the rising prices of essentials, supermarket giant Coles appears to be doing just fine.
Coles announced an impressive $1.09 billion net profit for the 12 months to June 2023–up 4.8 per cent compared to the last financial year.
The nation’s second-biggest supermarket also generated an impressive $36.7 billion in supermarket sales revenue, up by 6.1 per cent, year on year.
Earlier, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) launched an inquiry into alleged price gouging by big businesses. The group was quick to point out that the supermarket giant is the subject of hundreds of reports from the public about their prices.
'The public have been told that supply chain issues and inflation are to blame for the cost-of-living crisis,’ said ACTU assistant secretary Joseph Mitchell.
‘But when you see the profits like those posted…it is legitimate to ask whether Australia’s big supermarkets have used the cost-of-living crisis as a smokescreen to push up their profit margins, despite costs decreasing for themselves.' The ACTU also shared some of the responses it had received from Aussies over supermarket price concerns.
'$200 used to get us a trolley worth of groceries, I literally paid $67 for five items on Tuesday,' said Holly from Western Australia.
While Beth from Victoria said: 'My health is suffering as I can’t afford many fresh food items. No matter how hard I budget.'
'As a pensioner I often can’t buy food and cleaning items I need plus I have to eat less. It also means I can’t even go out for a coffee etc. It’s very lonely,' Judi from South Australia added.
According to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures, annual food inflation is 7.5 per cent. Meat and seafood also increased by 3.5 per cent, while fruits and vegetables are up 1.6 per cent, bread and cereal 11.6 per cent, and dairy (the highest increase) is up by 15.2 per cent.
Coles also shared that supermarket price inflation in the fourth quarter had moderated to 5.8 per cent–down from 6.2 per cent in the third quarter. Inflation in the fresh category was 2.3 per cent in the June quarter–down from 4.1 per cent in the third quarter.
Coles and Woolworths hold two-thirds of the supermarket sector in Australia, and Woolworths plans to announce its profits soon.
Meanwhile, you can read more about the effect of inflation on these two big supermarkets here.
Members, what are your thoughts on this story? Are you feeling the effects of inflation too? How is it affecting you? Let us know in the comments below!
While households across the country crumble under the rising prices of essentials, supermarket giant Coles appears to be doing just fine.
Coles announced an impressive $1.09 billion net profit for the 12 months to June 2023–up 4.8 per cent compared to the last financial year.
The nation’s second-biggest supermarket also generated an impressive $36.7 billion in supermarket sales revenue, up by 6.1 per cent, year on year.
Coles announced an impressive $1.09 billion net profit in the past financial year. Image source: Wikimedia/Kgbo.
Earlier, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) launched an inquiry into alleged price gouging by big businesses. The group was quick to point out that the supermarket giant is the subject of hundreds of reports from the public about their prices.
'The public have been told that supply chain issues and inflation are to blame for the cost-of-living crisis,’ said ACTU assistant secretary Joseph Mitchell.
‘But when you see the profits like those posted…it is legitimate to ask whether Australia’s big supermarkets have used the cost-of-living crisis as a smokescreen to push up their profit margins, despite costs decreasing for themselves.' The ACTU also shared some of the responses it had received from Aussies over supermarket price concerns.
'$200 used to get us a trolley worth of groceries, I literally paid $67 for five items on Tuesday,' said Holly from Western Australia.
While Beth from Victoria said: 'My health is suffering as I can’t afford many fresh food items. No matter how hard I budget.'
'As a pensioner I often can’t buy food and cleaning items I need plus I have to eat less. It also means I can’t even go out for a coffee etc. It’s very lonely,' Judi from South Australia added.
According to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures, annual food inflation is 7.5 per cent. Meat and seafood also increased by 3.5 per cent, while fruits and vegetables are up 1.6 per cent, bread and cereal 11.6 per cent, and dairy (the highest increase) is up by 15.2 per cent.
Coles also shared that supermarket price inflation in the fourth quarter had moderated to 5.8 per cent–down from 6.2 per cent in the third quarter. Inflation in the fresh category was 2.3 per cent in the June quarter–down from 4.1 per cent in the third quarter.
Coles and Woolworths hold two-thirds of the supermarket sector in Australia, and Woolworths plans to announce its profits soon.
Meanwhile, you can read more about the effect of inflation on these two big supermarkets here.
Members, what are your thoughts on this story? Are you feeling the effects of inflation too? How is it affecting you? Let us know in the comments below!
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