Mumbai, July 25 - India's biggest consumer goods maker, Hindustan Unilever Ltd, on Friday posted a 13.2 percent rise in quarterly profit, beating forecasts, as strong sales of personal-care products offset high raw-material costs.
The unit of Anglo-Dutch Unilever Plc said net profit rose to 5.58 billion rupees ($132 million) in its second quarter ended June 30 from 4.93 billion rupees reported a year earlier.
The June quarter 2007 figure includes a one-off gain of 211.7 million rupees.
Total income rose to 43.00 billion rupees from 35.08 billion.
The figures beat a Reuters poll forecast of net profit of 5.40 billion rupees on net sales of 40.76 billion.
Lever, which makes Lux soap, Surf detergent and Lipton tea, is battling rising costs of raw materials such as palm oil and linear alkyl benzene, while double-digit inflation is crimping consumer spending and encouraging downgrades to cheaper brands.
It also faces greater competition from international and local rivals, including top cigarette maker ITC Ltd.
Shares in Hindustan Unilever, which has a market value of nearly $12 billion, fell 10 percent in the June quarter, compared to a 9 percent decline for the sector index and a 14 percent fall on the main share index.