Latest news with #consumerhealth
Zawya
4 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Haleon captures over 20% market share in Egypt, locally manufactures 90% of product portfolio
Egypt - Haleon, the global consumer health leader, has reinforced its footprint in Egypt following its demerger from GSK in July 2022. The company now holds over 20% of Egypt's consumer health market and manufactures approximately 90% of its flagship brands locally, according to Asif Alavi, General Manager for North Africa at Haleon. Speaking to Daily News Egypt, Alavi said that local production covers trusted household names such as Sensodyne, Parodontax, Panadol, Otrivin, and Voltaren Emulgel, underscoring Haleon's commitment to supply chain resilience and economic contribution through technology transfer and export capabilities. Egypt serves as a key regional base for exports to the Maghreb, Gulf countries, and Saudi Arabia. Alavi emphasized that local manufacturing has helped shield the company from global economic volatility, including inflation, currency fluctuations, and supply chain disruptions. 'Our strategy has significantly minimized exposure to global shocks, enabling us to maintain stability and accessibility in the Egyptian market,' he noted. Globally, Haleon is advancing its innovation pipeline, including a £130m investment in a new Global Oral Health Innovation Centre in Weybridge, UK, slated to open in 2027. The facility will support Haleon's category leadership in oral health and accelerate R&D for key brands like Sensodyne, which Alavi described as resilient due to its therapeutic value and strong dentist recommendations—even during economic downturns. Recognizing the price sensitivity in emerging markets, Haleon has adopted a multi-format, tiered pricing strategy to ensure broad accessibility. The company also champions self-care as a cornerstone of sustainable healthcare. Alavi cited research by the Global Self-Care Federation, which estimates self-care interventions have already delivered $119bn in global healthcare cost savings and $1.9trn in welfare gains—divs projected to rise to $179bn and $2.8trn, respectively. Looking ahead, Alavi reaffirmed Haleon's long-term vision in Egypt: 'We are committed to being a core contributor to the Egyptian healthcare ecosystem—by making everyday health more accessible, inclusive, and sustainable.' © 2024 Daily News Egypt. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
See 'Constructive' Capital Markets: Shift4 Incoming CEO
Shift4 Payments incoming CEO Taylor Lauber speaks with Sonali Basak at the 10th Annual Goldman Sachs Leveraged Finance and Credit Conference. They discuss the health of the consumer, the trade war and capital markets. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Bloomberg
7 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
See 'Constructive' Capital Markets: Shift4 Incoming CEO
Shift4 Payments incoming CEO Taylor Lauber speaks with Sonali Basak at the 10th Annual Goldman Sachs Leveraged Finance and Credit Conference. They discuss the health of the consumer, the trade war and capital markets. (Source: Bloomberg)
Reuters
19-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Tepid home improvement sales put Home Depot, Lowe's under microscope
May 19 (Reuters) - As Home Depot (HD.N), opens new tab and Lowe's (LOW.N), opens new tab get set to report earnings this week, April sales data from independent firms have investors gauging the likelihood of recession against the uncertainty of tariff whiplash. With homeowners tending to lawns, gardens and DIY projects as the weather warms, investors are keeping an eye not just on the home retailers' sales, but indicators about the health of the consumer. 'People don't have the savings they did during the pandemic, and they're relying on high employment and wage growth to continue to be able to spend,' said Mark Mathews, executive director of research at the National Retail Federation. Home improvement spending tends to be a bellwether for broader economic health, Mathews said, because it reflects consumers' ability to take on big projects, and can be a leading indicator of activity in the housing market. April credit and debit card sales were not promising. Spending at building and garden supply stores fell 2% year-over-year in April, even as every other retail category saw growth, according to May data from NRF. At Lowe's, April sales tumbled nearly 3% year-over-year after having risen 6.6% in March, debit and credit card purchase data from Affinity Solutions revealed. Home Depot saw just a 0.7% jump after a 4.2% rise in March, according to the data. Consumers' intention to shop at these stores in the future also fell slightly in April, according to HundredX, a company that uses surveys to gauge public sentiment about retailers. Compared to April of 2024, both stores saw about a 1% year-over-year decrease in future purchase intent. Among lower-income shoppers - those more vulnerable to economic instability - the drop was sharper, HundredX found. Home Depot and Lowe's declined to comment. It might indicate that a rebound in the stalled U.S. housing market is a ways off. 'People keep baking in the assumption of a recovery, and then it keeps getting pushed out,' said Courtney Yakavonis, a senior equity analyst at Columbia Threadneedle Investments, which holds stock in both retailers. 'I believe it's going to happen eventually, but the timeline is murky.' Others in the sector have hinted at the specter of a slowdown. Tractor Supply Co. (TSCO.O), opens new tab cut its annual profit forecast in April, citing macroeconomic uncertainty. But experts interviewed by Reuters weren't ready to forecast a recession. Wage and job growth is fairly steady, and there could be plenty of reasons for an April sales slump - including tariffs, said Morningstar analyst Jaime Katz. President Donald Trump on April 2 announced sweeping tariffs on a host of trade partners, only to later pause them for 90 days. He imposed a virtual embargo on Chinese imports on April 9, but earlier this month paused those tariffs as well. The uncertainty has discouraged consumers from buying big items, Katz said, which is why she'll be putting more weight on how Home Depot and Lowe's performed last quarter with professional contractors. Yakavonis said she wants to hear more about how Home Depot and Lowe's will manage tariffs. Though neither company is overly exposed to China, tariff uncertainty makes it hard to assess their financial health. 'It's hard to just do the Excel math without knowing what steps they're taking to offset that,' she said. Home Depot is due to report earnings on Tuesday, while Lowe's is slated to report on Wednesday.
Al Jazeera
15-05-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Largest US retailer Walmart warns of price hikes because of tariffs
Walmart, the world's largest retailer, will have to start raising prices later this month due to the high cost of tariffs, executives have warned in a clear signal that United States President Donald Trump's trade war is filtering through to the US economy. As a bellwether of US consumer health, Walmart's explicit statement on Thursday is also a signpost for how the trade war is affecting companies as Walmart is noted for its ability to manage costs more aggressively than other companies to keep prices low. Walmart's shares fell 2.3 percent in morning trading after it also declined to provide a profit forecast for the second quarter, even as the company's US comparable sales surpassed expectations in the first quarter. Net sales rose 2.5 percent to $165.6bn, a hair shy of estimates, while same-store sales were up 4.5 percent. Walmart's quarterly adjusted profit was 61 cents per share, ahead of the analyst consensus for 58 cents per share. Many US companies have either slashed or pulled their full-year expectations in the wake of the trade war, as consumers stretch their budgets to buy everything from groceries to essentials at cheaper prices. But Walmart's statement will resonate nationwide, as roughly 255 million people shop in its stores and online weekly around the world, and 90 percent of the US population lives within 10 miles of a Walmart. US shoppers will start to see prices rise at the end of May and certainly in June, Walmart's Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said in a CNBC interview. On a post-earnings call with analysts, he said the retailer would also have to cut back on orders as it considers price elasticity. As the largest importer of container goods in the US, Walmart is heavily exposed to tariffs, and even though the US and China reached a truce that lowered levies for imports on Chinese goods to 30 percent, that's still a high cost to bear, executives said. 'We're very pleased and appreciative of the progress that has been made by the administration to bring tariffs down … but let me emphasise we still think that's too high,' Rainey said on the call, referring to the tariff cuts negotiated over the weekend. 'There are certain items, certain categories of merchandise that we're dependent upon to import from other countries and the prices of those things are likely going to go up, and that's not good for consumers,' he added. Other retailers also said they would be boosting prices. German sandal maker Birkenstock on Thursday said it plans to raise prices globally to fully offset the impact of the US tariff of 10 percent on European Union-made goods. US consumer sentiment ebbed for a fourth straight month in April, signaling watchful purchasing, while the country's gross domestic product (GDP) contracted for the first time in three years during the first quarter, fanning worries of a recession. Walmart's CEO Doug McMillon said the retailer would not be able to absorb all the tariffs' costs because of narrow retail margins, but was committed to ensuring that tariff-related costs on general merchandise – which primarily come from China – do not drive food prices higher. To mitigate the impact, Walmart is working with suppliers to substitute tariff-affected components, such as replacing aluminium with fibreglass, which is not subject to tariffs. Despite these efforts, McMillon noted that adjusting costs is more challenging in cases where Walmart imports food items like bananas, avocados, coffee, and roses from countries such as Costa Rica, Peru, and Colombia. Analysts said Walmart was better positioned than rivals, as its scale enables it to lean on its suppliers and squeeze out efficiencies to shield customers from tariffs, but only so much. 'There will likely be some demand destruction from tariffs; a complete wreck is unlikely,' said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management. Walmart on Thursday kept its annual sales and profit forecast intact for fiscal 2026, but withheld second-quarter operating income growth and earnings per share forecasts, citing a 'fluid operating environment … [which] makes the very near term exceedingly difficult to forecast at the level and speed at which tariffs could go up'.
