Note ban impact: In muted Q3 show, HUL's net up 7% on exceptional income

Net revenues down fell 0.7% YoY to Rs 7,706 crore; PAT declines 10% to Rs 920 crore

Demonetisation has hit consumption demand in rural markets much worse than the urban markets. That is the key reading from the country’s largest consumer staples company Hindustan Unilever’s (HUL) results for the December 2016 quarter (Q3). This weakness could also be reflected in other rural-focused consumer companies’ quarterly results, believe analysts.

For Q3, HUL’s volumes fell four per cent, but an equivalent increase in realisations aided revenues. HUL’s net revenue (net sales plus other operating income) thus, fell 0.7 per cent to Rs 7,706 crore, compared to Rs 7,764 crore in the year-ago quarter. While the company’s reported profit after tax