Supermarket chain Asda, owned by US retail giant Walmart, announced that in the three months to June 30th, like-for-like sales rose by 1.8% excluding petrol. The figure represents a significant improvement on the previous quarter, which saw sales decline by 2.8% marking an 11th consecutive month of decline. Walmart president and CEO Doug McMillon said that "customers are responding to investments in price and store experience by visiting the stores more often and increasing their basket sizes."