Colgate-Palmolive maintains recent strong growth in 2013

Colgate-Palmolive has announced its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2013, during which it generated worldwide net sales of $4.36 billion (2.65 billion pounds).

This represented a year-on-year increase of two percent, while global unit volume and organic sales both grew by 6.5 percent. For the full year, net sales reached a total of $17.41 billion, up by two percent over 2012.

The company's leading global market shares in the toothpaste and manual toothbrush sectors remained strong at 44.9 percent and 32.8 percent respectively, while its share of the mouthwash market rose to a record high of 17 percent.

Progress has also been made with a global restructuring and efficiency improvement programme that will help to deliver long-term benefits for the business.

Ian Cook, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Colgate-Palmolive, said: "For the 11th consecutive quarter, operating profit, net income and diluted earnings per share all increased versus the year ago period."

The company was also recently included in the latest Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America Indices for 2013-2014, as well as the latest Climate Disclosure Leadership Index from CDP, demonstrating its commitment to environmental protection.