Tide maker Procter & Gamble said this week that its customers were doing fewer loads of laundry to save money on detergent, the latest sign of a consumer pullback amid economic anxiety caused by trade-war talk and volatile markets. Elsewhere, nervous customers are spending less on body wash, snacks, and burritos as they hunker down for economic turmoil.
The White House’s ever-changing tariff regime is injecting record amounts of uncertainty into the economy, and that’s now made its way to consumers’ spending habits. After pulling back on everyday luxuries like travel and self-care and even big-ticket purchases, the uncertainty has come to settle in Americans’ laundry rooms.
Procter & Gamble CEO Jon Moller told Yahoo Finance that customers are doing fewer laundry loads each week to save on detergent. P&G, a major consumer-goods conglomerate, makes Tide, the U.S.’ best-selling detergent, as well as dozens of brands including Gillette razors, Pampers diapers, and Dawn dishwashing liquid.
It cut its financial outlook for the year due to consumer stress, to just 2% growth.
Competitor Colgate-Palmolive corroborated the trend on Friday. CEO Noel Wallace told investors on the earnings call that, while “consumers are still brushing their teeth, taking showers, cleaning their floors and feeding their pets,” they were feeling less inclined to stock up on purchases.
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