PARIS: French cosmetics giant L’Oreal announced Saturday it was removing words like “whitening” from its products, against the backdrop of global anti-racism protests.
“The L’Oreal Group has decided to remove the words white/whitening, fair/fairness, light/lightening from all its skin evening products,” the company said in a statement.
The announcement follows Thursday’s decision by the Indian and Bangladeshi arms of Unilever to rename their locally marketed “Fair & Lovely” skin-lightening cream for the same reason.
Anglo-Dutch firm Unilever — which reportedly raked in some $500 million in revenue from the product in India last year — said it would stop using the word “Fair” in the name as the brand was “committed to celebrating all skin tones.”
Several companies — including L’Oreal — have been criticized recently for skin-lightening products after the global rise of the Black Lives Matter movement following the police killing in the US of African-American George Floyd last month.
Johnson & Johnson said last week it would stop selling some Neutrogena and Clean & Clear products, advertised as dark-spot reducers in Asia and the Middle East.
Several American groups have said they would to change their visual identity, such as Mars, which says it plans to develop its famous Uncle Ben’s brand, which uses a caricature of an African American as its logo.
L’Oreal to remove words like ‘whitening’ from products
https://arab.news/c2eq4
L’Oreal to remove words like ‘whitening’ from products
- Unilever — which reportedly raked in some $500 million in revenue from the product in India last year — said it would stop using the word “Fair”
- Several companies — including L’Oreal — have been criticized recently for skin-lightening products after the global rise of the Black Lives Matter movement
Saudi Arabia’s foreign reserves rise to a 6-year high of $475bn
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s foreign reserves climbed 3 percent month on month in January to SR1.78 trillion, up SR58.7 billion ($15.6 billion) from December and marking a six-year high.
On an annual basis, the Saudi Central Bank’s net foreign assets rose by 10 percent, equivalent to SR155.8 billion, according to data from the Saudi Central Bank, Argaam reported.
The reserve assets, a crucial indicator of economic stability and external financial strength, comprise several key components.
According to the central bank, also known as SAMA, the Kingdom’s reserves include foreign securities, foreign currency, and bank deposits, as well as its reserve position at the International Monetary Fund, Special Drawing Rights, and monetary gold.
The rise in reserves underscores the strength and liquidity of the Kingdom’s financial position and aligns with Saudi Arabia’s goal of strengthening its financial safety net as it advances economic diversification under Vision 2030.
The value of foreign currency reserves, which represent approximately 95 percent of the total holdings, increased by about 10 percent during January 2026 compared to the same month in 2025, reaching SR1.68 trillion.
The value of the reserve at the IMF increased by 9 percent to reach SR13.1 billion.
Meanwhile, SDRs rose by 5 percent during the period to reach SR80.5 billion.
The Kingdom’s gold reserves remained stable at SR1.62 billion, the same level it has maintained since January 2008.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign reserve assets saw a monthly rise of 5 percent in November, climbing to SR1.74 trillion, according to the Kingdom’s central bank.
Overall, the continued advancement in reserve assets highlights the strength of Saudi Arabia’s fiscal and monetary buffers. These resources support the national currency, help maintain financial system stability, and enhance the country’s ability to navigate global economic volatility.
The sustained accumulation of foreign reserves is a critical pillar of the Kingdom’s economic stability. It directly reinforces investor confidence in the riyal’s peg to the US dollar, a foundational monetary policy, by providing SAMA with ample resources to defend the currency if needed.
Furthermore, this financial buffer enhances the nation’s sovereign credit profile, lowers national borrowing costs, and provides essential fiscal space to navigate global economic volatility while continuing to fund its ambitious Vision 2030 transformation agenda.
