Report on expected developments 

As the Merck Group has passed the half-year mark, it is now able to refine the guidance for 2011. The Executive Board now believes that full-year total revenues for the Group will increase to between € 10 billion and € 10.4 billion. As demonstrated in the first half of 2011, the net financial debt of the Merck Group resulting from the 2010 acquisition of Millipore is decreasing substantially. The Group operating result for 2011 is expected to amount to about € 1 billion, which is below the guidance given in April due to the many one-time adjustments explained earlier in this report.