Tesco's annual profits have fallen for the first time in almost 20 years, as the UK's biggest supermarket confirmed it was pulling out of the U.S.
Tesco is closing its U.S. chain of 199 Fresh & Easy shops, which have never made a profit, at a cost of £1.2bn.
Including write-downs and one-off costs, Tesco's statutory pre-tax profits tumbled 51% to £1.96bn. The results come a difficult time, with supermarkets in the UK recovering from the horsemeat scandal, BBC News reported.
