Consumer goods giant Unilever beat forecasts with a 5.8% rise in quarterly underlying sales, and said it now expected sales growth for the full year at the upper end of its 3% to 5% percent target range.
The Anglo-Dutch group, which makes Sunsilk shampoo, Dove soap and Knorr soups, also reported second-quarter earnings from continuing operations of 0.38 euro a share, up 15%, and said it planned to sell over 2 billion euros ($2.7 billion) of turnover, including its North American laundry business.
Analysts had been expecting sales growth in April-June of 4.2% to 5.5%, according to a Reuters poll of 9 brokerages, and earnings per share of 0.32 to 0.40 euro.