The 3 per cent rise in the share price of Coles Group on a day that global equity markets were rattled by tensions in Ukraine speaks to the market’s relief about the supermarket giant’s December-half earnings.

While Woolworths warned last December that its interim food earnings before interest and tax would drop between 7 per cent and 9 per cent, Coles’ food earnings came in just 0.8 per cent lower, with analysts arguing Coles appears to have done a better job at managing supply chain disruptions and elevated COVID-19 costs than its great rival.