Indian consumers will have to shell out a few bucks extra to buy detergents and soaps as fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) giant Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) hiked the prices of its products in laundry and body-cleansing categories.
In the detergent category, HUL has increased the price of wheel detergent for both one-kg and 500-gram packs. The increase is estimated to be around 3.5 per cent, indicating a jump of Rs 1-2 in both the packets. As a result, a 500-gram packet will now cost Rs 29, as against Rs 28 earlier, a kilogram will cost consumers Rs 58, as against Rs 56-57 earlier.
Similar growth is being seen in the company’s Rin Detergent Powder. Consumers will now have to pay Rs 82 for a one-kg packet as against Rs 77 earlier. The company has also reduced the gramage for smaller packs. For example, a Rs 10 pack of rinse detergent used to weigh 150 grams, which has now come down to 130 grams. The overall growth for Rin is estimated to be around 6-8 percent. High-end HUL products like Surf Excel have seen the sharpest growth, with prices rising by Rs 14 for a one-kg packet.
Soap bars like Lux and Lifebuoy have also been affected by the hike in prices, mainly combo packs. Both the soaps have seen an increase of around 8-12 per cent. For example, a 100 g, 5-in-1 pack of Lux, which earlier cost Rs 120, will now cost Rs 128-130. The body cleansing category has also seen a reduction in grammar for smaller packs.
Price hikes have been a constant phenomenon for HUL and are seen across various categories of products ranging from tea to detergents. The rise in prices comes in the wake of higher inflationary pressures that the company is facing in its key-input materials, some raw material prices hitting 20-year highs.
Till Tuesday, the FMCG giant posted micro gains when HUL’s share price hit a high of Rs 2,808 on the Bombay Stock Exchange, extending gains for two straight days. The rally in shares helped the company take its market valuation above Rs 6.5 lakh crore for the first time. The company was trading at Rs. 2791.50 in the market, as reported by CNBC.
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