Ocado looks to power up after sliding into the red

0 The grocery delivery group has had a ‘transformational period’ with a string of overseas deals

Online grocer Ocado has swung to a £9 million halfyear loss as it counted the cost of hefty investment in new warehouses and IT systems after ramping up expansion plans.

The losses in the six months to 3 June compare with pretax profits of £7.7m a year earlier, while underlying earnings fell 13.9 per cent to £38.9m for the half-year.

Retail revenue growth slowed to 11.7 per cent after the Beast from the East hit at the start of the year. But the

recent FTSE 100 entrant said it had been a “transformational period” after sealing a string of international deals, which has sent its shares soaring more than 260 per cent over the past year.

Ocado said the stock market success was now set to see higher-than-expected bonus payouts for its top bosses, with around another £9m pencilled in for 2018.

Chief executive Tim Steiner said: “In order to fully capitalise on the opportunities ahead of us, we are working at pace.”