Today, Nestlé Group released its financial results for the first nine months, with total sales of 67.1 billion Switzerland francs (about 551.36 billion yuan), organic growth of 2.0% in the first nine months of 2024, organic growth of 2.5% in Greater China, and actual internal growth of 3.9%.
FMCG understands that Nestlé Group CEO Fu Lehong said: "Thanks to positive real internal growth, we have achieved organic sales growth. Consumer demand has weakened in recent months and we expect the consumer environment to remain weak. In light of this outlook and the further destocking measures we will implement in the fourth quarter, we will adjust our full-year guidance – we expect organic sales growth to be in line with the previous nine months, at around 2 percent. ”
It is worth mentioning that Greater China achieved market share gains in the instant coffee, infant nutrition and consertions businesses, while the market share of the condiments and dairy businesses decreased. In terms of product categories, infant nutrition achieved mid-single-digit growth, mainly driven by sales growth driven by Nestlé and Wyeth Qifu, and was the largest contributor to growth in Greater China. The coffee business achieved high-single-digit growth, driven by Nescafe's ready-to-drink and instant products. Crunchy Shark and KitKat products drove mid-single-digit growth in the confectionery business. Despite the slowdown in the out-of-home channel, Nestlé's specialty catering and condiment business still achieved positive growth. Purina's pet care business maintained double-digit growth thanks to the strong performance of Purina Guanneng and Xiyue in new product launches and e-commerce channels. Negative growth in the dairy business reflects a sharp slowdown in the dairy market.
At the same time, Nestlé also announced changes to its executive board. Greater China (GCR) will be part of the Asia, Oceania and Africa (AOA) region, which will be led by Remy Ejel. Mr. Zhang will step down from the Group's Executive Board and continue to serve as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Greater China.
Zhang Xiqiang said that the management team in Greater China is in a "very stable and united phase", and all business units are also moving steadily in the established strategic direction. This adjustment does not mean that the Group's emphasis on the Chinese market has diminished. "The Group's confidence and commitment to the Chinese market remains unchanged, and China remains one of the Group's most important strategic markets in the world. The Group is confident in the future of the Chinese market, and we will continue to receive our full support. He also revealed an important message: in order to demonstrate the importance attached to the Chinese market, the Group has confirmed that next year's global board meeting will be held in China, and all members of the global board will visit China. This is undoubtedly a high recognition and trust for us in Greater China and our team. "For the time being, Nestlé's strategic strategy in the Chinese market will remain stable and there will be no major adjustments for the time being." Going forward, we will continue to be committed to the execution of our established strategies and remain steadfast in our commitment to doing things the right way every day. ”
Mr. Zhang Xiqiang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Nestlé Greater China