LONDON: British supermarket giant Tesco on Friday posted rising first-quarter sales on easing virus curbs and solid online demand, a year after posting strong figures during the first pandemic lockdown.

Total sales advanced 1.3 percent to £13.4 billion ($18.7 billion, 15.7 billion euros) during Tesco’s first quarter, or 13 weeks to late May, as Covid-19 restrictions eased.

However, Britain’s biggest retailer had experienced soaring sales in the same part of 2020, as people switched to online grocery deliveries during the early stages of the pandemic. Tesco sales during the current first quarter were up 8.1 percent compared with two years ago, before the health crisis struck.

And online sales were up 81.6 percent on pre-pandemic levels, as consumers placed 1.3 million orders per week.