By Peter Evans and Tapan Panchal
LONDON--Unilever PLC (UL, ULVR.LN) Monday downgraded its
sales-growth expectations, blaming a slowdown in emerging
markets.
The world's No. 2 maker of branded household products after
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) said weakening growth in many
emerging countries meant underlying sales growth would now be
between 3% to 3.5% in the third quarter, which ended Monday.
Growth in both the first half and second quarter of Unilever's
financial year was 5%, and analysts had estimated a similar
increase in the third quarter. Unilever had warned of a slowdown in
emerging markets at its first-half results, but conditions have
worsened since then, especially on the falling value of many
emerging market currencies, it said Monday.
"The emerging market slowdown has accelerated as a result of
significant currency weakening," Unilever said in a statement.
Unilever said developed markets remained "flat to down," no change
to its previous guidance.
Since the financial crisis, consumer-products firms have focused
much of their resources on emerging markets, where customers were
less affected by the global recession. Thanks to its early
expansion into countries including China and India, Unilever is
more exposed than some of its peers to these markets, which now
account for more than 50% of its sales.
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