Unilever is talking to the Government about listing its ice-cream business in London rather than in Amsterdam or New York.
Boss Hein Schumacher is to spin off a £15billion company that includes household names Ben & Jerry’s, Wall’s and Magnum next year.
The Dutch chief executive was tight-lipped about whether Chancellor Jeremy Hunt had got involved in talks but said that there had been ‘regular updates with people in government’.
But the troubled London stock market faces hot competition from exchanges in Amsterdam and New York.
Schumacher said Unilever would look ‘at all the options on the table’. ‘We are really at the beginning,’ he said, adding that ‘dedicated project teams are progressing the work at pace’.
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The remarks came as the maker of Dove soaps and Hellmann’s mayonnaise sold 2.2 per cent more goods in the first quarter of 2024, lifting shares 5.6 per cent to 4082p.
And he insisted he was ‘doubling down, not watering down’ his stance on plastic packaging, pay and diversity.
Last week, the firm rowed back some sustainability pledges amid an investor backlash.
It is felt London would be a natural home for its ice-cream firm as it is where Unilever is listed and it is the birthplace of Wall’s, in 1922.
But Dutch officials believe Amsterdam is the favourite.
London could net a rare listing as Greek industrials conglomerate Mytilineos, listed in Athens and valued at £4.7billion, ponders a multi-billion-pound float.
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