CONSUMER goods giant Hindustan Unilever, the Indian unit of Anglo-Dutch Unilever, on Monday (July 23) said its quarterly profit had more than doubled, helped by higher sales in key product groups.
The company said in a statement that net profit for the three months to June soared 112 per cent to Rs13.31bn ($242m/£153m) from the same period a year earlier, outstripping market forecasts.
“We saw a quarter of strong volume-led growth with an improvement in margins,” said HUL chairman Harish Manwani.
But he called the economic environment “challenging due to domestic inflation and the general economic slowdown”.
Hindustan Unilever (HUL), India’s biggest consumer goods firm by revenues, said sales in the first quarter rose 14 per cent to Rs62.5bn ($11.15m/£7.19m) despite a tougher retail climate in the face of a weakening economy.
The firm’s home and personal care business rose in the quarter by 20.6 per cent year-on-year, reflecting growth in sales of toiletries.
The company’s food products segment grew 10.6 per cent in the quarter from a year earlier.
The company’s profit was also boosted by a one-time game from the sale of property.
