Militant insurgencies across West Africa are weighing on Nestle SA business in the region, adding to the pressures of currency depreciation, high inflation and the Ebola outbreak, according to the food-maker.
Islamist rebellions in some countries are undermining consumer confidence, Nandu Nandkishore, Nestle’s 56-year-old head of Asia, Africa and Oceania, said.
Militants linked to Al-Qaeda have stepped up attacks against United Nations’ peacekeepers and French soldiers in northern Mali this year, while Nigeria’s government is struggling to contain a rebellion by Boko Haram, which has killed more than 13,000 since 2009.
"The climate of fear immediately affects trade, which then slows down or tends to de-stock significantly and then affects consumers going out to shop,” Nandkishore said. “It does affect business.”
Conditions from Africa to Asia are deteriorating for Nestle, which has forecast a challenging fourth quarter after nine-month sales missed estimates. The Vevey, Switzerland-based company is struggling to lift prices in Europe, and wrestling a decline in its frozen-food business in North America.
News by Bloomberg, edited by ESM
