Turnover in the first 6 months of 2016 dropped for Unilever, but that was entirely because of negative exchange rate fluctuations. If those are taken out of account, the company managed a decent turnover increase.
Difficult market conditions
Over the first 6 months of 2016, Unilever’s turnover reached 26.3 billion euro, down 2.6 % compared to the year before. However, ignoring any exchange rate fluctuations, it would have been a 4.7 % turnover increase for Unilever. Net profit grew 2 % to 2.7 billion euro.
The company does keep referring to difficult market conditions, particularly in Europe and the United States. Most of its turnover progress comes from emerging markets like Russia, Argentina and Brazil. 60 % of its turnover comes from outside the United States and Europe.
Unilever does feel growth will slow down soon, mainly because of the continuous economic problems in South America. For its full fiscal year, Unilever expects 3 to 5 % in underlying turnover growth. For the first half of the year, its underlying turnover growth reached 4.7 %.
