Unilever, the Anglo-Dutch consumer goods group, has bowed to pressure from Beijing to delay planned price increases, highlighting a new regulatory risk in an inflationary climate.
While Chinese authorities routinely force state-owned enterprises to place the public interest ahead of commercial concerns, Unilever’s confirmation of the government’s request signals that large foreign multinationals are not immune to such pressure.
A Unilever spokeswoman in London said, “I can confirm that Unilever China received a request from the National Development and Reform Commission and has chosen to comply with it, and postpone price adjustments previously scheduled for April 1.”