LONDON (REUTERS) - British supermarket group Sainsbury's said on Thursday (Nov 5) it could cut 3,500 jobs in a restructuring that will see in-store meat, fish and deli counters as well as 420 standalone Argos general merchandise stores close.

The group reported a loss before tax of £137 million (S$241.9 million) for the 28 weeks to Sept 19, reflecting £438 million of one-off costs associated with the Argos store closures and other strategic and market changes introduced by new chief executive Simon Roberts.

He plans to refocus on Sainsbury's core food business, lowering prices, accelerating food innovation and growing online grocery services.

Underlying pretax profit was £301 million - ahead of analysts' average forecast of £275 million made in the same period last year.

Strong sales during the Covid-19 pandemic outweighed the extra costs and losses at its bank.