SYDNEY, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Australia's Wesfarmers Ltd WES.AX , owner of the country's No. 2 grocery chain Coles, said on Wednesday its first-quarter food and liquor sales grew 0.4 percent on a comparable store basis, as it withstood unusually strong deflation in vegetable prices.
The retail-to-resources conglomerate said headline food and liquor sales rose 1.5 percent to A$7.97 billion ($6.20 billion) for the July-September quarter, while comparable store sales rose 0.4 percent.
The growth rate reflected "an acceleration in supply-driven fresh produce deflation during the period, particularly in soft vegetables", Wesfarmers said in a statement. ($1 = 1.2855 Australian dollars)