Strong growth seen in sales in India during H1CY22, says Unilever CEO

The Anglo-Dutch FMCG major Unilever on Tuesday said its sales grew strongly in the priority market of India in the first half of 2022.

The company reported an underlying sales growth of 8.1 per cent in the January-June period of 2022 to 29.6 billion euros, said an earning statement by Unilever.

While Covid-19 restrictions have been eased in most markets, the lockdown in China affected consumers, particularly in the second quarter.

"Of our three priority markets, the USA and India again grew strongly, while sales in China were affected by the lockdowns in the second quarter," said Unilever CEO Alan Jope.

It will continue to reshape its portfolio, completing the sale of the global tea business ekaterra, and the acquisition of Nutrafol, a leading provider of hair wellness products.

India comes under the Asia/AMET/RUB (Africa, Middle East, Turkey; Russia, Ukraine, Belarus) market region of Unilever, which has reported underlying sales growth of 9 per cent to 13.7 billion Euros.

However, its volume was down 1.1 per cent in the zone. For the second quarter, Unilever's net sales were 7.1 billion euros in the zone.

Unilever also changed its guidance for underlying sales growth. "Our guidance for underlying sales growth in 2022 was previously at the top end of a range of 4.5 per cent to 6.5 per cent. We now expect underlying sales growth to be above that range, driven by price with some further pressure on volume," said Unilever.

Jope said the "challenges of inflation persist and the global macroeconomic outlook is uncertain, but we remain intensely focused on operational excellence and delivery in 2022 and beyond.

Last week, on Jul 19 Unilever's India subsidiary Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) reported a 13.85 per cent increase in its net profit to Rs 2,391 crore for the June quarter. Its total income was up 20.36 per cent during the quarter under review and stood at Rs 14,757 crore as against Rs 12,260 crore in the corresponding period a year ago.

While HUL's revenue from sales of products in the April-June quarter was Rs 14,331 crore, up 19.46 per cent against Rs 11,996 crore in the corresponding period a year ago.