Shares fall after Procter & Gamble’s warning on price rises

P&G shares fell 3.5 per cent in premarket trading after the company has warned that cash-strapped customers were increasingly reluctant to accept higher prices, as the US consumer goods group flagged slower sales growth in the next 12 months.

The maker of Tide detergent, on Friday, reported a 1 per cent quarter-on-quarter drop in sales volume in the three months to June 30, which it said was offset by an 8 per cent increase in prices over the period.

The consumer goods group warned it anticipated slower sales growth of up to 2 per cent over the next year, below the 5 per cent it recorded in the 12 months to June 30.

P&G is the latest company to pass on higher prices to consumers, following similar moves by Colgate-Palmolive, Unilever, Kraft-Heinz, Nestlé and Danone.

For the fiscal year to June 30, P&G posted revenue up 5 per cent year-on-year at $80.2bn, ahead of analysts’ expectations for $80bn. Earnings per share rose six per cent to $5.81, missing the expected $5.83.