Inflation concerns at Unilever

Unilever stated that they will only be able to return to their 2021 profitability levels after two years due to the pressure created by inflation.

Expecting inflation to peak in the first quarter of the year, Unilever estimates that raw material costs will increase by around 2 billion euros.

Although the operating profit margin may narrow by 2.4 percentage points, the company emphasized that most of the losses in the margins will be compensated in 2023 and that there will be a full recovery in 2024.

Shares of the company fell 3.2 percent in London after the news from Unilever.

Graema Pitkethly, CFO of Unilever, said commodity prices were up around 20 percent. However, he said, this percentage is lower for Unilever due to the scale of the company and the agreements they can make with suppliers.

Unilever announced last month that they will lay off 1,500 jobs and undergo internal restructuring to accelerate growth.