Supermarket chain Tesco are in a fight with Unilever over price increases 13 Oct
It's a story that's been unfolding over the last few hours and yet another example of how the Brexit fallout and weaker pound are impacting on life in the UK.
Tesco has stopped selling dozens of its most famous household brands including Marmite ( love it or loath it), PG Tips tea, and Pot Noodles ( a culinary must for students everywhere) to its online shoppers because of a dispute with its biggest supplier, Unilever.
Unilever want to increase prices in the UK to compensate for the sharp decrease in the value of the pound, but Tesco is resisting that move.
The products are still being sold in stores but Tesco said its shelves were running short of several brands and "currently experiencing availability issues on a number of Unilever products". We hope to have this issue resolved soon,"
A few of the products are actually produced in the UK but that hasn't stopped Unilever from taking advantage of the falling pound fallout/hysteria.
The Beeb has more on the unfolding story here.
Unilever won't be the last to try and pass on increased costs but to me that highlights the sheer ineptitude of company treasurers/FDs to hedge any/sufficient part of their exposure ahead of the Brexit vote. Something I saw in droves through my MSPFX business despite my best protestations to clients that they really couldn't take the risk of having no hedge in place.
My strategy at the time was GBP bearish as regular readers will know and even BOE gov Carney finally admitted afterwards that the UK economy had inherent problems ahead of the referendum so even on Remain being the outcome the GBP rally was going to be limited.
Those corps are certainly not going to find any sympathy from this Marmite boy ( love me or hate me !)
