India market shows strong volume growth for Unilever, says CEO Fernandez | Company News

The British multinational consumer goods maker said the “fundamentals” of its business in India, its second largest market after the US, were improving.

In the fourth quarter, in the home care segment, Unilever reported underlying sales growth of 4.7 percent along with volume growth of 4 percent; This was supported by “continued strong volume in India,” according to the company.

“India was a significant contributor to this momentum, with Home Care delivering mid-single-digit volume growth and achieving its highest ever market share, led by strong performance in fabric washing and home care liquids,” Unilever CEO Fernando Fernandez said in Unilever’s fourth-quarter earnings forecast.

Fernandez said that across geographies, the US and India are clear “anchor markets” for Unilever.

Responding to a question on growth, he said: “India is improving both in terms of economic infrastructure and business fundamentals, particularly our brand equity is strengthening… Brand superiority scores in India are improving overall.” Fernandez added that enforcement in independent trade has also improved, especially in rural areas and traditional trade.

“And we’re increasing our share, especially in home care. We’ve got 40 percent of our business there. In the last read, we’ve had the highest share ever there,” he added.

Its Indian subsidiary Hindustan Unilever delivered Underlying Sales Growth (USG) of 5 per cent in the December quarter, led by Underlying Volume Growth of 4 per cent.

In 2025, the India business has “underlying sales growth of 4 percent on volume of 3 percent,” supported by “a competitive performance with gradually improving market conditions and share gains.”

Unilever also acknowledged that HUL’s 5 per cent sales growth, along with 4 per cent volume growth, “reflects an increase in performance and recovery following the Goods and Services Tax-related disruption”. “We focus on beauty, health and personal care, with an emphasis on premium segments, digitally native brands and d-Commerce visibility, especially in the US and India,” he said.

Unilever reports turnover of 50.5 billion euros in 2025; This was down 3.8 percent due to unfavorable exchange rates and net sales.

Hindustan Unilever (HUL) has consistently been cited as Unilever’s second largest market globally after the US in terms of revenue, with India accounting for around 12-14 per cent of total sales.