Weekly News Wrap: High inflation a boon for Aussie supermarkets; PDD splashes on Super Bowl ad for US site

And Uniqlo ramps up marketing campaigns in the US.

From Reuters:

Australian supermarkets will reap bigger profits in the fiscal 2023 half-year due to decades-high inflation and increased savings, but analysts warned of a rough second half as households reel from mounting expenses due to higher cost of living.

Woolworths and Coles will likely see growth in their half-year profit, according to analyst estimates, helped by higher shelf prices and lower COVID-19-related costs.

Australian households face higher grocery and energy bills due to global inflationary pressures, while budgets are further squeezed by higher mortgage payments because of the central bank's rate hikes aiming to quell inflation.

The hikes have added $618.60 (A$900) a month in repayments to the average $343,667.50 (A$500,000) mortgage, according to an estimate.

"There's a bit of a disconnect between confidence and reality at the moment - the confidence levels are low, but people are still spending," said Matthew Haupt, a lead portfolio manager whose WAM Leaders fund has holdings in Woolworths and Coles.

READ MORE: Weekly News Wrap: Chinese retailers offer discounts on iPhones; Lawson weighing options for China unit

From CNBC:

Temu, the U.S. shopping app owned by Chinese e-commerce giant PDD Holdings, aired a commercial during the Super Bowl.

It is rare for a Chinese firm to buy a Super Bowl ad spot, which costs millions of dollars. But Temu’s effort highlights its ambition to crack the U.S. e-commerce market, following in the footsteps of another Chinese online shopping company Shein.

The commercial, which aired Sunday during the first and third quarters of the game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs, is titled “Shop Like A Billionaire.” It follows a young woman who is amazed at the cheap prices of clothing and accessories that Temu has to offer.

From Bloomberg:

The biggest challenge to Japanese fashion giant Uniqlo’s plan to take on the US? Getting more Americans to know who they are.

The apparel maker, known for its affordable cashmere sweaters and solid basics, wants to go big in one of the world’s toughest consumer markets. Although Uniqlo is a fixture in shopping streets of New York and other coastal cities, parent Fast Retailing is giving its flagship clothing brand a hefty marketing budget to ensure the brand can reach the same level of awareness in Iowa and Texas as it enjoys in Japan, Asia and parts of Europe.

Differing tastes in clothing, depending on local markets, makes expansion especially tough, according to Daisuke Tsukagoshi, Uniqlo’s chief executive officer (CEO) for the US and Canada.