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September 3, 2003
 Ladies
and Gentlemen,
I am delighted to welcome you to the first international press
conference of Bayer CropScience here in Monheim, our Global
Headquarters.
Our aspiration is to establish Bayer CropScience as a leading
company in the area of Crop Science and to set new standards in
business performance.
The purchase of Aventis CropScience early June 2002 was the
biggest acquisition in nearly 140 years of Bayer history, which
clearly underlines the significance of our business in Bayer´s
overall strategy. Against strong competition we have made a
decisive step towards achieving our strategic objectives.
We will be
more than just the sum of the two combined businesses. Together
with our customers, we intend to grow faster than the market, as
fittingly expressed by our slogan "Your Partner for Growth".
Assuming a long term growth in the world Crop Protection market
of approximately 2 % per year, we are planning to increase our
revenue by 4 %.
At the same time, we are striving to attain an EBITDA margin
(earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization)
of 29 % by 2006. This will establish Bayer CropScience as a
clear benchmark for the industry.
Recent market launches and new product introductions in the
future will be a significant factor in reaching the mid-term
targets and as such represent a major focus of our business
activities.
Bayer CropScience's cutting-edge technology platform, sound
experience and proven track record in the field of managing
innovation will be instrumental in achieving our goals.
A key driver of profitability will be the realization of our
synergy goals. We have implemented support systems to actively
manage this process and ensure timely completion. By 2006 we aim
to achieve Euro 570 million synergies per year.
With approximately 20,000 employees worldwide at present and
products and services in more than 120 countries, we have the
global outreach it takes to be among the top players in our
industry and to be the partner of choice for our customers
around the world.
We are already market leader in Crop Protection and
Environmental Science. Globally known and established brands
stand for quality, reliability and innovative solutions that are
tailor made for our customers. We want to strengthen this
leadership and expand our activities in seed and biotechnology.
Since the acquisition, we have been able to hold our own
extremely well in a difficult market environment. Sales in the
first half-year of 2003 increased by 66 % to Euro 3.228 billion.
A pro forma comparison with the same period the previous year
indicates a decline in sales of 4 %, primarily caused by
currency effects in our core markets in NAFTA, Asia and South
America. At constant exchange rates, our figures indicate a
growth of 8 %, a clear sign that the overall business
performance is well on track.
All three businesses, Crop Protection, Environmental Science and
BioScience, about which my colleagues will talk in more detail,
are developing well in a challenging market.
With an EBITDA margin of 27 % in the first half of 2003 we are
already head to head with our main competitors, an exceptional
achievement as we still had to manage major acquisition-related
tasks well beyond our daily business.
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