Report & accounts 2002 in full - Unilever

22 Operating review by region
Bango soy sauce and Sariwangi tea brands in Indonesia.
This performance was partly offset by declines in tea in
Central Asia as prices are adjusted to reflect lower
commodity prices and a focus on improving profitability as
we exit from low-value, low-growth commoditised teas. In
Japan the successful alliance with Suntory in ready-to-drink
tea has doubled the market share of Lipton to over 25%.
Operating margin BEIA increased to 14.1% with gains from
our savings programmes partly reinvested in increased
advertising and promotions.
2001 results compared with 2000 at
current exchange rates
€ million € million %
2001 2000 Change
Turnover 8 046 8 091 (1)%
Operating profit 880 781 13%
Group turnover 7 846 8 038 (2)%
Group operating profit 862 776 11%
2001 results compared with 2000 at
constant 2000 exchange rates
€ million € million %
2001 2000 Change
Turnover 8 558 8 091 6%
Operating profit BEIA 1 154 908 27%
Exceptional items (166) (109)
Amortisation of goodwill
and intangibles (41) (19)
Operating profit 947 780 21%
Operating margin 11.1% 9.6%
Operating margin BEIA 13.5% 11.2%
Turnover grew by 6% with underlying sales ahead by the
same amount.
In South East Asia and Japan, sales growth exceeded 10%.
Notable were: a strong performance in Japan with the
successful launch of Dove shampoo; Lipton ready-to-drink
tea through the alliance with Suntory; and our skin business
through Dove. In South East Asia our personal care brands
powered ahead in all countries led by new variants of
Sunsilk, and in Indonesia there was increased market
penetration for Rexona and excellent performances from
Citra and Pepsodent following its relaunch.
In India, the more focused brand portfolio delivered
improved growth and profitability. There were particularly
strong performances by Sunsilk and Clinic in hair, Rin and
Wheel in laundry, and Fair and Lovely range extensions in
skin care. In Foods, sales were flat as we aggressively
improved margins and eliminated poor-performing brands.
In China, there was substantial progress towards profitability.
Operating margin BEIA for 2001 advanced to 13.5% in Asia
and Pacific reflecting the benefits of global procurement,
improved Foods profitability and a stronger mix through the
growth in personal care.
Unilever Annual Report & Accounts and Form 20-F 2002
Latin America
5 680
00
6 605
01
5 445
02
Turnover
€ million
At current exchange rates
614
00
Operating profit
BEIA € million
2002 results compared with 2001 at
current exchange rates
€ million € million %
2002 2001 Change
Turnover 5 445 6 605 (18)%
Operating profit 493 329 50%
Group turnover 5 433 6 591 (18)%
Group operating profit 493 328 50%
2002 results compared with 2001 at
constant 2001 exchange rates € million € million %
2002 2001 Change
Turnover 7 119 6 605 8%
Operating profit BEIA 1 011 872 16%
Exceptional items (96) (261)
Amortisation of goodwill
and intangibles (279) (282)
Operating profit 636 329 93%
Operating margin 8.9% 5.0%
Operating margin BEIA 14.2% 13.2%
872
01
Operating profit
€ million
Underlying sales grew by 12% driven by pricing action
to recover devaluation-led cost increases, particularly in
Argentina. Outside Argentina, volumes grew by 2% with
price ahead by 9%. Including the impact of disposals,
turnover in the region grew by 8%. At current exchange
rates turnover fell by 18%. Weaker currencies in Argentina
and Brazil contributed 9.5% and 4.7% respectively to this
decline. Excluding the impact of acquisitions and disposals,
sales were 14% below 2001 levels. Operating profit BEIA
fell by 13% at current exchange rates.
Personal care continued to perform very strongly. Sedal
shampoo grew well across the region. Dove shampoo has
been launched in Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Peru and is
making very good progress. In deodorants, Rexona has been
successfully launched in Venezuela and relaunched in
Colombia and we have taken clear market leadership in
Mexico. In laundry, market shares have held firm against our
759
02
345
00
329
01
493
02