Unilever CEO Says Prices Might Not Have Reached Their Peak Despite Inflation Cooldown

Per CNBC

The CEO of Unilever shares his thoughts on how the market has passed the peak of inflation, but prices have not yet hit the highest point. Alan Jope, the company's CEO, highlighted how "input cost pressure" was rising.

The Unilever CEO shared that despite rising prices, the company had a "playbook" for the new economic environment due to its experiences in countries with extremely high inflation. Jope referenced Argentina and Turkey markets.

At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Jope gave a statement to CNBC sharing how the firm spotted changes in different business segments. The Unilever CEO shared how customers remained resilient despite the market.

Here are the segments that Jope said he felt the "input cost pressure:"

  • Petrochemical derived products
  • Agriculturally derived products
  • Energy
  • Transport
  • Logistics

The company reported a 12.5% price growth for its Q3 2022 period. Jope shared how Unilever has been accelerating its costs.

Jope: “We do see the prospect of higher volume elasticity as winter energy costs hit, as households’ savings levels come down and that buffer goes away and as prices continue to rise,”

The Unilever CEO shares a distinction regarding price increases saying that despite prices still rising, the rate of their increase could already be peaking. Jope then revealed the playbook that the company expects to follow.

Jope: “So we do have a playbook, and the playbook is that it’s important to protect the shape of the P&L by landing price.”

Unilever's plans come at a time when the US commercial real estate industry has seen a massive influx of withdrawal requests as investors try to pull out their money. The withdrawal pile now sits at a massive $20 billion.

Despite certain markets dropping, some hedge funds are doing well, with Citadel becoming the top-earning hedge fund as it achieved a $16 billion gain in 2022. This, however, doesn't resonate with the whole economy as there are some gainers and more losers.

See flow at unusualwhales.com/flow.

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