Going into 2012, we knew it was going to be a challenging year.
Economies were slowing down, the eurozone was full of uncertainty and
raw material prices were putting a strain on margins in
all our markets.
As a starting point for defining our strategic agenda,
we initiated a company-wide analysis of the outlook
for the end-user segments that we serve. This is
something that we will continue to do on a regular
basis in order to assess the outlook for our businesses.
Over the past decade, AkzoNobel has built a very strong
foundation for sustainability and is recognized as a leader
in its industry, as demonstrated by a consistently high
position on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and
by the number one position achieved in 2012 for the DJSI
Chemicals supersector.