By Ben Griffiths PUBLISHED: 19:34 EST, 2 June 2013 | UPDATED: 01:35 EST, 3 June 2013 Supermarket giant Tesco will be forced to defend its recent record after sales again slid backwards following the horsemeat scandal and intense competition from rivals. The retailer will come under close scrutiny from investors when it reports financial figures for the first three months of the year on Wednesday. City analysts reckon Britain’s biggest grocer will say underlying sales for the period will have fallen by up to 1 per cent, piling more pressure on chief executive Phil Clarke. Forecasts: City analysts predict Tesco will say underlying sales for the first three months of the year have fallen
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Underlying sales for first three months of 2013 forecast to have fallen 1%
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Financial results will pile more pressure on chief executive Phil Clarke
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Tesco has more than 6,700 stores worldwide, including 3,146 in the UK
That forced Mr Clarke, who started his career stacking shelves in @placeholder, to unveil a £1billion overhaul plan in April last year.