Hindustan Unilever Profit Rises 18%

By Preetika Rana 

NEW DELHI-- Hindustan Unilever Ltd., India's largest fast-moving consumer goods company, said its net profit rose 18% last quarter thanks to strong demand for its personal-care products.

The Indian unit of Unilever PLC posted a net profit of 12.52 billion rupees ($202 million) for the three months ended in December, compared with 10.62 billion rupees a year earlier. The company's sales rose 8% to 75.79 billion rupees.

"We have delivered another quarter of competitive growth and margin improvement," Hindustan Unilever Chairman Harish Manwani said in a statement.

Hindustan Unilever sells its products including soaps, shampoos and soups through hundreds of thousands of tiny shops across the subcontinent. Sales of its products, which include Axe deodorant and Lipton tea, are widely-seen as an indicator of consumer sentiment in Asia's third-largest economy.

Its shares fell 6% to 889.05 rupees Monday.

Write to Preetika Rana at [e-mail]

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