Procter & Gamble’s earnings surge on new products

Procter & Gamble reported a 4.14% increase in sales volume for categories like hair care and family care in the latest quarter, with organic sales rising 4% in Q2 excluding currency fluctuations, acquisitions, and divestitures. The company’s shift to a combination of price-driven growth and volume-driven growth is now strengthening.

The company is seeing accelerating growth in sales volume in North America, with some measures of US consumer sentiment showing improvement after the Covid-19 pandemic and recession concerns. China has been a challenging market for P&G, with the company reverting to Nigeria as an import-only market and divesting its fabric and home-care businesses in Argentina.

Chief Executive Jon Moeller recently spent time in China, the company’s second-biggest market after the U.S., talking with consumers and government officials. Analysts are watching P&G and its peers to determine whether they will be able to maintain pricing levels as inflation cools.

P&G plans to continue innovating in products that are already fixtures in millions of consumers’ homes. P&G’s volume for the quarter remained flat, with only its grooming business reporting growth.

P&G’s sales volume could increase due to people adding new products to their daily routines, according to Schulten. Fabric enhancers, used by only 35% of U.S. households, are used for 65% of laundry loads. P&G plans to continue innovating in products already in millions of homes.