Supermarkets will get their first insight today into the likely direction of an inquiry looking at practices in the £95billion grocery sector.

The Competition Commission's document will be released at the end of the first phase of its investigations, which are likely to have studied pricing strategies and the use of development land.

Watchdogs have previously said the buying power of the big supermarkets could distort competition.

The Commission's inquiry was launched in May amid allegations firms, including Tesco, were engaged in a practice where unused property was kept to prevent rivals from entering local markets.

Tesco has denied it has done anything wrong.

The Big Four supermarket chains - including Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrisons - control nearly three-quarters of the UK grocery market. Tesco has an estimated 31% market share.

The report will represent the consensus view of the commission's six-strong review panel.

The commission was due to publish its outline report last month but delayed publication until this month after receiving "a huge response" from small retailers, suppliers and consumer groups.

Its full report is expected to be published next year. This is the third time in seven years that major supermarkets have been investigated.