Unilever scrubs up nicely

Turnover reached just shy of €27bn (£19bn) thanks to 1.1 per cent growth in volumes and a 1.7 per cent increase in prices, combined with fortuitous currency moves. Management says consumer demand remains "weak", with stronger growth in emerging markets offset by "deflationary trends" elsewhere.

The company's shift in focus from food to health goods has been registered by the stock market, which has reclassified it from the food producers sector to personal care. A key development was the establishment of a 'prestige personal care' business formed of four recent acquisitions, including skincare brand Dermalogica. Elsewhere in personal care, which posted underlying sales growth of 3.3 per cent, management praised the early success of Baby Dove in Brazil and premium brand TRESemmé, which they say is "well on its way to becoming a billion euro business". Personal care now accounts for 37 per cent of the company's sales, but this is likely to grow to 50 per cent, according to management.

Disposals of brands such as Slim Fast in the US and Peperami in Europe were a drag on turnover, but management expects merger and acquisition activity to be positive in the second half. On 2 July, the company acquired Murad, a clinical skincare brand.

Costs remain under tight scrutiny, with the group's cost reduction programme exceeding the €500m target, according to Mr Polman. There has also been some restructuring, with research and development departments embedded into the four business areas of personal care, food, refreshment and home care.

The quarterly dividend of 30.2¢ was 6 per cent higher than last year in euro terms, although that was offset by sterling's rise. Outgoing chief financial officer Jean-Marc Huët says the company has shown an average 8 per cent dividend growth year on year in the past 30 years.

Analysts at Liberum are expecting adjusted EPS of 132p for the full financial year, from 130p in 2014.