Key events1h agoUnilever says prices could rise this year1h agoBarclays traders and investment bankers help push profit up 17%2h agoIntroduction: AI sell-off deepens as chip stocks slump in market retreatIt is a mixed open for European stock markets this morning – the Stoxx Europe 600 is up by 0.1%, while the UK’s blue chip FTSE 100 index down by 0.1%.Oil prices are falling again today, with the international benchmark Brent crude down 2.7% to $85.95 a barrel.Unilever says prices could rise this yearHellmann’s, a brand of Unilever, is seen on display in a store in Manhattan, New York City, US, March 24, 2022 Photograph: Andrew Kelly/ReutersElsewhere, consumer goods group Unilever has warned that its prices could rise later this year.The company, which owns the likes of Dove soap and Hellmann’s mayonnaise, said it expects “underlying price growth to accelerate in the second half as commodity-driven pricing continues to land in market”.It came as the FTSE 100 group reported better than expected second quarter underlying sales – up 5.8%, helped by higher volumes and prices.Chief executive Fernando Fernandez, who was appointed last year to accelerate its turnaround strategy, said:
double quotation markWe have delivered a strong volume-led performance in the first half, with a significant step-up in the second quarter – the best volume quarter at Unilever in over a decade
