The British maker of Dove soap, Hellmann’s condiments, and Marmite spread said at the end of October that its price increases hit an all-time high of 12.5% in the third quarter.
Unilever’s greater exposure to emerging markets and food, where cost and margin pressures have been most intense, partly explains the difference, analysts say. Unilever said price rises vary by category and market and not all consumers were experiencing the 12.5% hikes. “These countries have high inflation, linked to weak foreign exchange. That shows up in Unilever’s foreign exchange translation losses that are much bigger,” he said.Unilever’s cost inflation is running at more than 20% this year, compared to 14% to 15% at Nestle, Barclays analyst Warren Ackerman said, although its rivals may not yet have hit the peak of their price rises.
Unilever and Nestle are estimated to report pre-tax profit margins of about 15% this year, according to Refinitiv. P&G is expected to report a pre-tax profit margin of nearly 24%.