Kimberly-Clark, the maker of Huggies diapers and Kleenex, has cut its annual sales and profit forecasts. The company cited a significant hit to second-quarter sales in China due to false claims about the quality of its diaper brands.
China Disruption
Claims circulating on Chinese social media that the company’s Huggies diapers contained toxic formamide weighed on demand, despite independent testing by a government-certified third party confirming their quality and safety.
The disruption in China, a major market, is expected to continue to affect sales and profit in the near term. Volumes in Kimberly-Clark’s North American business slipped 0.3% in the second quarter, as sticky inflation and higher food and gas prices in the United States forced lower-income consumers to cut back spending.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
