Group Management Report Products Safety and Health Environment Human Resources Social Commitment Consolidated Financial Statements 85
expectations, this can help us strengthen our market positions
and open up new market segments. This can also have a
positive impact on the achievement of our strategic goals.
Synergies
The ALTANA Group is decentralized to a large extent. Still, in
some areas of the value-creation chain and in certain management
functions, central units support the divisions and play
a coordinating role or provide shared platforms. To the extent
that we manage to push forward the networks within
the Group more strongly than expected, this may spawn
further potential to improve efficiency.
The Management Board’s Overall Statement
on the Anticipated Development of the
Group Including Its Overall View of the Risk
and Opportunity Situation
For 2022, ALTANA expects further global economic growth,
albeit at a slower pace than in the previous year. In this environment,
we forecast operating sales growth for ALTANA in the
mid-single-digit percentage range. With a continuing strained
price situation in the area of material, logistics, and energy costs
and otherwise stable cost structures, we expect earnings profitability
in 2022 to be at the previous year’s level. The absolute
corporate value-related key performance indicators are expected
to be well above the value creation threshold again.
We believe that the risk of burdens due to geopolitical tensions
and negative impacts from a deterioration or even recession
in the global economy or important core regions, in contrast with
our expectations, exists. In addition, considerable risks to our
short-term sales and earnings performance are posed by the
higher price volatility on the raw-material and energy markets,
by short-term exchange-rate fluctuations, and by impairments for
intangible assets acquired within the framework of acquisitions.
Overall, we have not found any risks that could endanger the
continued existence of the Group. The risks we face are set
against opportunities that could enable us to achieve sales and
earnings performance surpassing our forecasts.