Forecast for the Covestro Group

The analysis of the development of our key management indicators is based on the business performance described in this Half-Year Financial Report, the economic outlook outlined above, and consideration of our potential risks and opportunities. The acquisition completed on April 1, 2021, and the integration of the Resins & Functional Materials (RFM) business of Koninklijke DSM N.V., Heerlen (Netherlands), into the Coatings, Adhesives, Specialties segment has been factored into this forecast.

Covestro adjusted the forecast presented in the Annual Report 2020 on April 13, 2021, as a result of business development that has been better than previously expected. An increasingly positive outlook led to the forecast being raised again on July 12, 2021. We hereby confirm the forecast for fiscal year 2021 amended on July 12, 2021, and expect the following development of our key performance indicators:

We still anticipate that core volume growth for the Covestro Group will be between 10% and 15%, with around 6 percentage points attributable to the acquisition of the RFM business. We also continue to project growth for the Coatings, Adhesives, Specialties segment significantly above the corridor expected for the Group. For the Polyurethanes and Polycarbonates segments, our growth projection remains in the mid- to high-single-digit percentage range.

This year, FOCF is forecast to fall between €1,600 million and €2,000 million. We continue to expect a FOCF well over the prior-year figures for the Polyurethanes and Polycarbonates segments and now project a similar trend for the Coatings, Adhesives, Specialties segment (previously: FOCF well under the prior-year figure).

For fiscal year 2021, we now expect a ROCE of between 16% and 20%.