Unilever 2001 Annual Report Download - page 5

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The Unilever Group
Unilever N.V. (NV) is a public limited company registered in
the Netherlands, which has listings of shares or certificates
(depositary receipts) of NV on the stock exchanges in
Amsterdam, London and New York and in Belgium,
France, Germany, Luxembourg and Switzerland.
Unilever PLC (PLC) is a public limited company registered
in England which has shares listed on the London Stock
Exchange and, as American Depositary Receipts, on the
New York Stock Exchange.
The two parent companies NV and PLC, together with
their group companies, operate as nearly as is practicable
as a single entity (the Unilever Group, also referred to as
Unilever or the Group). NV and PLC and their group
companies constitute a single group under Netherlands
and United Kingdom legislation for the purposes of
presenting consolidated accounts. Accordingly, the
accounts of the Unilever Group are presented by both
NV and PLC as their respective consolidated accounts.
Publications
This publication is produced in both Dutch and English and
comprises the full Annual Report and Accounts for 2001 of
NV and PLC. This document complies with the Netherlands
and the United Kingdom regulations. It also forms the NV
and PLC Annual Reports on Form 20-F to the Securities and
Exchange Commission in the United States for the year
ended 31 December 2001, and cross references to Form
20-F are set out on page 117. It is made available to all
shareholders who request or elect to receive it, and on the
website at www.unilever.com .
The separate publication, ‘Unilever Annual Review 2001’,
containing a Summary Financial Statement with figures
expressed in euros, with translations into pounds sterling
and US dollars, is also published in Dutch and English. It is
a short form document that is prepared in accordance with
the United Kingdom regulations for Summary Financial
Statements. The Unilever Annual Review 2001 is mailed to
all registered shareholders and to other shareholders who
are either entitled or have asked to receive it, and is also
made available on the website at www.unilever.com .
Accounting policies
Unilever’s principal accounting policies are described on
pages 51 to 53. Unilever complies with United Kingdom
Financial Reporting Standard 18, which requires that
the most appropriate accounting policies are selected
in all circumstances.
Reporting currency and exchange rates
From 1 January 2000, Unilever adopted the euro as its
principal reporting currency. Details of the change are
explained on page 11. The effect of exchange fluctuations
means that the trends shown may differ significantly from
those previously shown in sterling.
Details of key exchange rates used in preparation of these
accounts are given on page 93, together with Noon Buying
Rates in New York for the equivalent dates.
Unilever Annual Report & Accounts and Form 20-F 2001
GENERAL INFORMATION >2
Wherever used in this report, the abbreviation BEIA
refers to profit measures before exceptional items and
amortisation of goodwill and intangibles. Unilever believes
that reporting profit measures before exceptional items
and amortisation of goodwill and intangibles (BEIA)
provides additional information on underlying earnings
trends to shareholders. The term BEIA is not a defined
term under UK, Netherlands or US Generally Accepted
Accounting Principles (GAAP) and may not therefore be
comparable with similarly titled profit measurements
reported by other companies. It is not intended to be a
substitute for or superior to standard GAAP measurements
of profit. Please refer also to ‘Basis of reporting and
discussion’ on page 11.
is used in this report to denote amounts in euros.
£and pare used in this report to denote amounts in
pounds and pence sterling respectively.
Fl. is used in this report to denote amounts in Dutch
guilders.
$is used in this report to denote amounts in United States
dollars, except where specifically stated otherwise.
The brand names shown in italics in this report are trade
marks owned by or licensed to companies within the
Unilever Group.