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Leverkusen (dpa) - Almost three years have passed since the first ruling in the US legal dispute over alleged cancer risks of fertilizers containing glyphosate - the issue is still not ticked off for Bayer.
Due to billions in provisions for the disputes and high depreciation in the agricultural business, there was a loss of more than ten billion euros in 2020.
With a loss of around a third, Bayer shares were at the bottom of the German benchmark index Dax in 2020.
The criticism of the shareholders of the agrochemical and pharmaceutical company at the online general meeting on Tuesday was correspondingly harsh.
Bayer boss Werner Baumann promised improvement: “We want to regain your trust.
And we will deliver. "
In view of the expensive glyphosate legacy that Baumann acquired in 2018 with the takeover of the US seed company Monsanto, he and Bayer lost a lot of investor trust.
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With a view to day-to-day business, Baumann is counting on recovery after a difficult year in which adverse weather in the USA and a weak Brazilian real weighed on the agricultural business and the corona pandemic caused headwinds in the pharmaceutical business.
While the virus crisis is not over yet, the prospects for agriculture have at least brightened in the past few months.
Corn and soy prices rose sharply, so farmers should be prepared to spend more money on seeds from Bayer, for example.
Baumann spoke of a successful start to the year.
"In the agricultural business in particular, we see a market environment that is increasingly positive for us."
Investors also rate the strategy of the pharmaceuticals division in the area of gene and cell therapies, which Bayer recently strengthened with acquisitions, as positive.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210427-99-372304 / 2