Hindustan Unilever (HUL) has once again increased the prices of its products in April.
The FMCG major has hiked prices, in the range of 3-20 per cent, across skin cleansing and detergents.
The sharpest increase was seen in Dove and Pears soap bars, which was to the tune of 20 per cent. The 25 gm stock-keeping unit pack prices of both Dove and Pears have been raised from Rs 10 to Rs 12. The price of the Lifebuoy bundle of four soaps (125 gms each) has gone up from Rs 124 to Rs 136.
Other products that have witnessed a price hike are Wheel detergent 500 gm and one kg packs from Rs 32 to Rs 33 and Rs 63 to Rs 65, respectively, according to a source in the know.
It has also increased the price of Vim Liquid 500 ml pouch, which was earlier priced at Rs 99 to Rs 104. An email sent to HUL received no response.
The company has been hiking prices across its portfolio as raw material rates continue to remain elevated. The maker of Lux resorted to increasing prices from the October-December quarter of FY21.
In February, the company raised prices across various products in more than one tranche. It was in the range of 3-13 per cent in order to cushion the blow of high raw material prices. In February, it hiked prices across various products, which include Lux, Lifebuoy, Dove Shampoo, Kissan Jam, Horlicks, Pepsodent, Surf Excel and Vim Bar.
After announcing the October-December results of FY22, Ritesh Tiwari, chief financial officer (CFO) and executive director, finance and IT, told investors on a conference call, “We continue to step up pricing through calibrated actions using net revenue management or the science of pricing.” Tiwari also said, in a press conference post its results that almost 30 per cent of the company’s business came from packs that had prices like Rs 1, Rs 5, and Rs 10. In these packs, HUL preferred to reduce the weight instead of increasing prices. This resulted in a volume decline despite selling the same number of units.
Axis Capital, in its preview report on HUL, for the quarter ended March, said its volume growth will witness a drag due to rural slowdown and price hikes. The brokerage expects the FMCG major’s volumes to be at -1 per cent.
Emkay said in its preview on the company that it expects HUL’s sales growth to increase by 10 per cent, largely driven by pricing.
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
