Future Prospects – More than € 3 Billion in Sales and a Return on Sales of Over 5 Percent in the Medium Term

• Goal: Further Reducing Dependence on Business Cycles
• Gradual Approach to Medium-Term Sales Target; Striving for Higher Sales Growth in drupa Year
• Focus on Financial Stability

Even though it is generally expected that the vigor of the world economy will barely be hampered during the current financial year, there are some risks to economic growth. As in the past, the further development of the overall economy represents the greatest risk - as well as the greatest opportunity - for the Heidelberg Group.

Overall Picture from the Management Board Regarding Prospects
Our planning assumes that the world economy will generally develop solidly despite the existing uncertainties. In the section "Expected Underlying Conditions" we explain how this corresponds to assessments by most leading economic research institutes. A number of factors currently make it difficult for us to present a reliable range for the development of our sales and earnings in the next two financial years:

• We expect that demand for printing presses in the newly industrializing countries will continue to be strong and will pick up further in the industrialized countries. The German Engineering Federation (VDMA) also believes that the print media industry is now only at the threshold of a period of economic recovery. Nevertheless, it is still difficult to estimate when print shops will again begin investing to a considerably greater extent - for example in the US, Canada, Australia, and Japan.
• Moreover, we can only predict with reservations whether, and to what degree, the run-up to drupa 2012 will cause a certain restrained level of spending by print shops, as well as the extent to which drupa will contribute to overcoming the investment backlog. The most important trade show for our industry is held every four years in May, in Duesseldorf. In the past, drupa has generally attracted some 400,000 visitors.

Our annual sales target in the medium term, which we intend to achieve within the next two or three years, has been set at over € 3 billion. Assuming that the economic environment will continue to be generally stable, we expect to gradually approach this target during the current and next financial year. Due to drupa 2012 and the ongoing upswing in the print media industry, the increase in sales in the next year should be greater than in the current financial year. As during the reporting year, growth in the Heidelberg Equipment Division will presumably be greater than in the less cyclically sensitive Heidelberg Services Division. We intend to keep our directly financed portfolio in the Heidelberg Financial Services Division as low as possible.

As at: July, 2011