Unilever numbers boost hopes for HUL

Unilever reports 2.9% sales growth in the first quarter of 2017

Unilever, the world’s second-largest consumer goods company, beat analysts estimates on Thursday to report 2.9 per cent sales growth in the first quarter of 2017. 

Unilever follows a January-December accounting period.

The result was better than Unilever’s fourth-quarter sales growth of 2.2 per cent, led by emerging markets. Unilever derives 57 per cent of its topline from emerging markets. India is part of this group contributing 20 per cent to it. 

These markets saw sales rise 6.9 per cent in the first quarter, raising hopes that Unilever subsidiaries like Hindustan Unilever (HUL) will report good numbers for the March quarter. HUL follows an