Peter Graham

Peter Graham asked for clarification on the deceleration of North America consumption throughout the quarter, the expected evolution of underlying category demand, and how the prior year's port strikes will impact the Q2 outlook.

Answer

CFO Andre Schulten confirmed North America consumption decelerated from 2.0-2.4% to 1.8-1.9% value growth, expecting it to remain in the 1.5-2% range for the next few quarters. He explained that Q2 will be the softest growth quarter due to a higher base period from last year's port strikes (October and January threats), but consumption run rates are expected to continue. He projected category growth to return to 3% in the future through increased users, usage, and value per use.

Peter Graham inquired about the deceleration of North America consumption throughout the quarter, the expected evolution of underlying category demand, and how much the port strike laps would impact Q2's growth.

Answer

Andre Schulten, CFO, confirmed North America consumption decelerated from 2.0-2.4% to 1.8-1.9% value growth, expecting it to remain around 1.5-2% for the next few quarters. He explained that Q2 would be softer due to a higher base period from last year's port strikes, with stronger growth anticipated in the back half of the year. P&G's long-term goal is to return category growth to 3% through increased users, usage, and value per use.