Tesco says its sales have fallen for a third quarter in a row across Ireland and the UK. The supermarket giant has reported a 3.7% fall in like-for-like takings at tills in the last three months.
Chief executive Philip Clarke has also warned there is no immediate sign of the group troubles easing.
Tesco has been cutting prices and is in the middle of a programme to revamp stores in the UK.
The latest figures in the supermarket sector show market conditions for Tesco remain tough as it saw sales decline by 6.6% for the 12 weeks ending March 30th.
The numbers from Kantar Worldpanel showed strong sales growth for both Aldi and Lidl, with respective growth rates of 21.9% and 11.1%.
Tesco has continued to attract high numbers of customers through its doors, with the number of shopping trips falling by just 1%.
Its main challenge - Kantar says - is that these trips are shrinking in size, with customers picking up one item less per shop.
Stephen Wynn-Jones is Editor of Checkout magazine. He told Newstalk's Business Editor Ian Guider that Tesco are facing an uphill battle.
