STORY: Unilever beat estimates for first-quarter sales growth on Thursday (April 24).
The maker of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and Dove soap reported a 3% increase for the period.
It was helped by price rises and strong demand for its premium products.
Unilever further said it expected the direct impact of tariffs to be limited.
Consumer goods companies have struggled to regain shopper loyalty after sharply hiking prices for years.
And they have more recently seen unpredictable shopping habits shaped by fears over the impact of U.S. tariffs.
Such firms were also forced to raise prices and accept thinner margins due to elevated costs resulting from the pandemic.
That was made worse by soaring energy prices after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Thursday’s update marks Unilever’s first since it surprised investors in February by removing former CEO Hein Schumacher.
The firm appointed CFO Fernando Fernandez as his successor in March.
Unilever had laid out cost cuts last year under its previous boss.
That included separating the ice cream division through a demerger, and cutting thousands of jobs to address years of underperformance.
Unilever said it was confident about its full-year plans despite the global uncertainty.
It also sees savings of close to $730 million flowing from its productivity plan by the end of the year.