Report on M&S and Ocado online food-delivery deal boosts shares
Online is Britain's fastest-growing grocery channel and is expected to grow 52% over the next five years
London — The share prices of British retailer Marks & Spencer and online supermarket Ocado rose sharply on Monday after a Sunday newspaper reported they were in talks on the launching of an M&S food delivery service. M&S rose as much as 2.6% and Ocado 6.7% after the Mail on Sunday said M&S and Ocado executives had been in talks for a few weeks. Both companies declined to comment. Ocado has a supply and delivery contract with Waitrose, the John Lewis Partnership-owned supermarket, that runs until 2020. The paper reported that the deal on the table was M&S effectively replacing the Waitrose part of the Ocado business. Waitrose would also not comment. Online is Britain's fastest-growing grocery channel and expected to grow 52% over the next five years to £17.3bn, according to industry researcher IGD. Ocado, which has helped to drive online shopping in Britain, has been trying to sell its proprietary technology to international supermarkets for a few years, with new deals seen as key to...
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