Audio By Carbonatix
Consumer goods giant Unilever Plc on Thursday pulled its full-year forecast, saying it could not “reliably assess the impact” of the coronavirus pandemic on its business, but said it would pay its quarterly interim dividend as planned.
The company said underlying sales for the first three months of the year were flat, as a sharp decline in shopping and restaurant trips in China during much of the quarter offset gains from stay-at-home consumers stockpiling its soups and laundry detergent in Europe and North America.
First-quarter turnover rose 0.2% to 12.40 billion euros ($13.42 billion), slightly missing estimate of 12.77 billion euros, according to analysts polled by Factset.
“China suffered a significant decline as the lock-down measures restricted out of home eating and shopping trips across much of the quarter,” the company said, adding that a lockdown in India from mid-March severely limited the flow of goods and led to a decline in South Asia.
The Anglo-Dutch company’s report follows strong results from larger rival Procter & Gamble, which last week reported its biggest U.S. sales increase in decades, as Americans stockpiled cleaning essentials before hunkering down in their homes due to coronavirus-related lockdowns.
Unilever is reviewing all areas of cash generation and usage as well as re-evaluating all costs in light of the health crisis, Chief Executive Officer Alan Jope said.
Latest Stories
-
Analysis: After allocating over ₵1bn, parliament now turns on the OSP
24 minutes -
OSP’s failure to stop Ofori-Atta is an irrecoverable mistake – Kpebu
43 minutes -
UPSA confers posthumous honorary doctorate on former first lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings
45 minutes -
Martin Kpebu says he has not been formally charged by OSP
51 minutes -
Why not clean energy: Cost or access?
53 minutes -
Minority sounds alarm over fuel shortages crippling Ghana’s fishing communities
54 minutes -
Minority calls for urgent action to shield farmers from rising production challenges
57 minutes -
AGRA Ghana salutes Farmers as nation marks Farmers’ Day
1 hour -
Bawumia’s favourability rises, widens lead in new Global Info analytics survey
1 hour -
Minority accuses gov’t of neglect after GH¢5bn rice left to waste
1 hour -
Why Tsatsu Tsikata’s legacy is Ghana’s future
1 hour -
Farmers need support all year, not just awards’ — Prof. Boadi
2 hours -
Spotify ranks ‘Konnected Minds’ Ghana’s No. 1 Podcast for 2025
2 hours -
Minority caucus push for modern AI-driven agricultural and fisheries revolution
2 hours -
Mahama reaffirms Ghana’s commitment to ending HIV/AIDS by 2030
2 hours
