UK retailer Morrisons posts rare sales rise - Kantar

LONDON, June 2 (Reuters) - Morrisons, Britain's fourth-biggest supermarket operator, has managed to increase its sales for the first time since December 2013, industry data for the last three months showed on Tuesday, outperforming its 'big four' rivals who suffered falls in an industry hurt by a price war and deflation.

New (KOSDAQ: 160550.KQ - news) chief executive David Potts, a former top executive at bigger rival Tesco (Xetra: 852647 - news) who joined Morrisons in March, saw sales rise 0.1 percent in the 12 weeks to May 24, market researcher Kantar Worldpanel said.

Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda have, like Morrisons, all been cutting prices and revamping stores in an effort to attract shoppers lost to discount rivals Aldi and Lidl, but saw their sales in the same period fall 1.3, 0.3 and 2.4 percent respectively.

Aldi and Lidl recorded sales growth of 15.7 percent and 8.8 percent, Kantar said, with Lidl's market share now at a record 3.9 percent. Tesco's market share fell 0.4 percentage points in the period.

"All of the major supermarkets are finding growth difficult as prices have been declining since Sept. 2014," Kantar said.

"Yet while like-for-like groceries are 1.9 percent cheaper than this time last year this is not as steep a fall as last month, when prices were down by 2.1 percent."

Overall the UK grocery market recorded growth of 0.2 percent in the period, with deflation standing at 1.9 percent. (Reporting by Neil Maidment; Editing by Greg Mahlich)