Marmite owner Unilever vows to appeal €590m Brazilian tax ruling
Unilever's share price fell during mid-morning trading after revealing it had received an "adverse judgement" from Brazilian courts in relation to a €590m (£504m) indirect tax case.
The Anglo-Dutch consumer giant warned in October that a case in Brazil was ongoing, although it stressed "we continue to believe that our case is strong".
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However, it announced the judgement this morning, with shares falling by nearly one per cent in reaction. Shares are up by 1.4 per cent compared with today's opening price.
Although it plans appeal the decision, the owner of brands such as Marmite and Flora said it was given the choice of either providing a guarantee for the €590m or stumping up the cash in full as a deposit.
It decided to deposit all the cash in full "given any penalty payments are much reduced if a deposit is made" the company detailed in a statement.
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Unilever said in October that the tax case was "in common with many other businesses operating in Brazil".
Nevertheless, today it remained confident that its appeal would overturn the verdict. "We still believe our case remains strong," the company said.