Unilever Q4 sales rise by 7.8%

Consumer goods company Unilever has reported a sales growth of 7.8% in the fourth quarter 2012 to €12.6bn ($16.8bn).

The firm’s net profit for the full year 2012 increased by 7% to €4.9bn ($6.53bn).

Unilever achieved sales of €51.3bn, an increase of 10.5%, improving full year profit margins by 0.3 % points to 13.8%.

The Anglo-Dutch firm, which owns Dove, Fairy Liquid and Ben & Jerry’s, increased underlying sales by 6.9% in 2012.

Unilever said the underlying sales grew even faster in the last three months at 7.8% with volume growth of 4.8% and price growth of 2.9%.

The hair care segment finished the year with a strong quarter of double-digit growth, as Tresemmé had a good quarter reflecting strength in Brazil, while new products boosted Dove.

The company said both Magnum and Sunsilk have joined the group of €1bn ($1.33bn) mark brands, bringing their total to fourteen.

According to the firm, the growth in deodorants segment performed well as Rexona achieved success with Maximum Protection in Latin America and the extension of the MotionSense technology to North America.

Unilever chief executive officer Paul Polman said the firm reported another quarter of good quality, profitable growth ahead of its markets, with all categories and all geographies adding a good overall balance between volume and price.

"Emerging markets again contributed double-digit growth helping us exceed €50 billion turnover, an important milestone in our journey to double the size of Unilever from €40 to €80 billion whilst reducing our environmental impact," Polman added.