Aldi has set out plans to create 4,000 jobs as part of a £1.3 billion store investment plan.

The discount retailer said it had seen sales increase by 8.3 per cent to £12.3 billion, above expectations, as pre-tax profits jumped by 49 per cent to £271.5 million in the year to December 31 2019.

The company said the latest data showed Aldi’s UK sales have continued to rise by 10 per cent, with its market share standing at 8 per cent.

The total number of customers now shopping with Aldi stands at more than 18 million.

Under the £1.3 billion investment plan, Aldi is set to upgrade stores and distribution centres and open 100 new stores throughout 2020 and 2021.

The newly created roles will be in addition to the 3000 permanent roles created in 2020 as demand rose during the Coronavirus pandemic.

It also plans to open on average one store per week between now and Christmas.

Other investments include new and expanded distribution centres and the rollout of recent innovations, including its new Click and Collect service which was successfully piloted and launched to customers last week.

Giles Hurley, chief executive of Aldi UK and Ireland, said: “With the UK’s economic outlook increasingly uncertain, families are more concerned about their grocery bills than ever. We’ve seen before that our customers need us most in times of financial hardship, which is why our commitment to remain Britain’s lowest-priced supermarket is more important than ever.”

Commenting on the supermarket’s response to the Coronavirus outbreak earlier in the year, he added: “If there is a positive to take from the situation, it’s that supermarkets, suppliers and shoppers can overcome the greatest of challenges when we work together.”

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