Andrex maker Kimberly-Clark has cut its annual profit forecast for this year due to the extra costs imposed by US tariffs.
The company now expects adjusted earnings per share to be flat in 2025, compared with a prior forecast of mid-to-high single-digit growth.
“The current environment will now mean greater costs across our global supply chain versus our expectations at the beginning of the year,” said CEO Mike Hsu.
Kimberly-Clark manufactures across 30 different countries with imports into the US from Canada, Mexico and China representing less than 10% of the cost of goods sold in the country.
But the new tariffs were still expected to cost around $300m this year, it said.
Kimberly-Clark’s organic sales were down 1.6% in the first quarter, meaning it missed the consensus expectation of a 1.4% rise.
The drop in sales was driven by a 1.5% fall in price, with volume and mix in line with last year.
Total sales fell 6% to $4.8bn, lower than analysts’ estimates of $4.88bn. This was due to the impact of currency and the sale of its private label diaper business in the US.
Kimberly-Clark exited the business to focus on its core personal care technologies, such as those used in sanitary napkins.
Its share price was down over 4% in pre-market trading.
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