Unilever takes step towards corporate simplification

Shares in Unilever rose after the consumer goods giant made further progress in efforts to simplify its Anglo-Dutch corporate structure.

The FTSE 100 group confirmed the offer to buy back the bulk of its Dutch preference shares for around €450m had been declared unconditional.

At a trading update earlier this month, chief executive Paul Polman said the board's review of the group's dual-headed Anglo-Dutch legal structure was "progressing well".

Preparations for the exit from the spreads business via a sale or demerger were also said to be fully on track, following September's sale of the South African spreads business, and with media reports that suitors for a sale have now submitted their bids.

Polman said the savings from his 'Connected 4 Growth' restructuring programme were delivering faster than expected and putting the business well on track towards the €6bn savings target, and a targeted underlying operating margin of 20% by 2020.

Unilever shares were up almost 2% to 4,164p just after 1100 BST on Thursday, having the previous session fallen below 4,100p for the first time in six months.