• Wall Street Journal, Friday, February 20, 2009 11:15 AM

Procter & Gamble CEO A.G. Lafley reasserted yesterday that his company does not plan to cut prices despite pressure from retailers to do so, Ellen Bryon and Anjali Cordeiro report. "We are not after mindless share and volume growth at any cost," Lafley said, adding that most P&G brands are maintaining or expanding their market share, even while being "nicked" by competition from lower-priced private-label goods.

Other CEOs speaking at a conference at Boca Raton also defended their higher prices. "We haven't had any gunfights with retailers," said Clorox CEO Don Knauss. "They weren't easy conversations but everyone accepted the price increases."

Nestlé, whose brands include Gerber and Purina, cited higher prices as a factor in the 70% increase in net profit it reported Thursday for 2008. And Kimberly-Clark, known for its Scott, Kleenex and Huggies brands, said it would maintain its prices, at least for now, after hefty increases in 2008.

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