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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Tesco warns global suppliers over price rises | Tesco warns global suppliers over price rises |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis has warned global suppliers not to artificially inflate their prices because of the fall in the pound. | Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis has warned global suppliers not to artificially inflate their prices because of the fall in the pound. |
| It is his first public comments since supplier Unilever tried to raise the cost of popular items such as Marmite due to a weaker currency. | It is his first public comments since supplier Unilever tried to raise the cost of popular items such as Marmite due to a weaker currency. |
| The UK's biggest retailer briefly halted online sales of Unilever's goods. | The UK's biggest retailer briefly halted online sales of Unilever's goods. |
| Mr Lewis said price rises needed to be "justified". | Mr Lewis said price rises needed to be "justified". |
| He agreed there were inflationary pressures, but he said multi-national companies should not increase prices just to reassure investors. | He agreed there were inflationary pressures, but he said multi-national companies should not increase prices just to reassure investors. |
| Currency volatility | Currency volatility |
| Mr Lewis pointed out that such businesses presented results in both constant and current exchange rates to take account of currency volatility. | Mr Lewis pointed out that such businesses presented results in both constant and current exchange rates to take account of currency volatility. |
| "The only thing we would ask of companies that are in that position is they don't ask UK customers to pay inflated prices in order that their reporting currency is maintained," he said. | "The only thing we would ask of companies that are in that position is they don't ask UK customers to pay inflated prices in order that their reporting currency is maintained," he said. |
| "They don't do that for countries outside of the UK." | "They don't do that for countries outside of the UK." |
| Unilever had argued price rises were necessary to cover higher import costs even though Marmite was being manufactured in the UK. | Unilever had argued price rises were necessary to cover higher import costs even though Marmite was being manufactured in the UK. |
| Mr Lewis, who worked for Unilever for 28 years, quickly reached an agreement with his old employer, but the terms of the deal have not been disclosed. | Mr Lewis, who worked for Unilever for 28 years, quickly reached an agreement with his old employer, but the terms of the deal have not been disclosed. |
| The pound has fallen by about 16% against the dollar since the UK voted in June to leave the EU. It has also fallen to a lesser extent against the euro. | |
| A weaker pound pushes up the price of imported goods, although it also makes UK exports cheaper for foreign buyers. | |
| Last week, Sainsbury's chief executive Mike Coupe said multi-national suppliers should shoulder some of the burden caused by the fall in the pound because their profitability was greater than UK supermarkets. |