Turnover decline for Unilever in first quarter

Unilever saw its sales in the first quarter decline by 6.3 percent due to lower demand, the Anglo-Dutch consumer goods company announced on Thursday. Turnover amounted to 11.4 billion euros (15.8 billion U.S. dollars) in the first three months of 2014, 761 million euros lower than in the same period one year ago. The decline was according to Unilever mainly caused by a negative currency impact and less demand in emerging markets. In the so-called trading update Unilever did not make public the profit figures. Sales were lower in all divisions, personal care, home care, foods and refreshment. The biggest loss was in foods with a decline of 10.5 percent, with sales dropping from 3.373 to 3.019 billion euros. The decline in foods was largely explained by the later timing of Easter in 2014, according to Unilever "Emerging markets are currently passing through a period of slower demand and economic volatility but our strategy remains unchanged,"said CEO Paul Polman in a press release. "We continue to invest in our brands so that they are well-placed to benefit from the significant longer term growth opportunity that will come from growing populations and higher disposable income,"he said