Unilever overcomes price pressures

Consumer goods giant Unilever has said strong sales in emerging markets such as China and India cushioned the blow of soaring commodity prices.

The world’s third-largest maker of branded household products said raw material costs – such as corn, palm oil and soya beans – caused operating margins to drop in the final three months of last year.

The maker of Dove soap and Magnum ice cream is the latest consumer goods giant to warn of the impact of rising commodity costs, joining the likes of rivals Nestle and Danone in raising its concerns.

But price pressures failed to stop profit growth, as Unilever posted full-year pre-tax profits of 6.1 billion euro (£5.2 billion) in the year to December, an 18% increase on the previous year and ahead of City expectations.