Gillette today said quarterly profit rose 17.5 per cent as the weaker dollar and strong sales helped it offset spending to defend against a new razor from rival Schick.
Earnings were also boosted by sales of Duracell batteries in the wake of the blackout in the US northeast and part of Canada, as well as shipments of its Mach3 Turbo Champion razor for fourth-quarter promotions.
But the drawdown in inventories of those batteries and razors is expected to slow sales growth in the fourth quarter, Gillette said.
The company, which has been trying to cut costs in recent years, also said it is considering streamlining its European blade and razor plants and distribution network.
Gillette shares rose to $33.50 in pre-market trading on Instinet from the close of $32.50 yesterday on the New York Stock Exchange.
Gillette posted a third quarter profit of $416 million, or 41 cents a share, compared with $354 million, or 33 cents a share, a year earlier.
Sales rose 11 per cent to $2.41 billion. But five percentage points of that sales growth were due to weakness of the dollar against other currencies, especially in Europe, Boston-based Gillette said.