Unilever PLC sold fewer products in the first quarter after the Dove soap maker raised prices by more than 8%, a sharper increase than its rivals that tested the limits of consumer tolerance in many countries.
Consumer-products makers across the board have been increasing prices as they grapple with big rises in the cost of energy, packaging and transport as the pandemic eases. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has further stoked the cost of inputs like cooking oil and grains as well as energy.