Elliott Robinson

Elliott Robinson asked for clarification on the market outlook guidance, questioning if it refers to absolute activity levels, and inquired about the status of dealer destocking in the Aggregates segment.

Answer

CFO Eeva Sipilä confirmed the guidance focuses on underlying market activity, not just seasonality. She explained that while dealer inventories have been reduced since mid-2023, dealers remain cautious about adding new stock due to high financing costs, and this destocking trend is expected to continue in Q2.

Elliott Robinson from Bank of America asked for clarification on whether the market activity guidance ignores seasonality and inquired about the extent and geographic variation of dealer destocking in the Aggregates segment.

Answer

CFO Eeva Sipilä confirmed the market outlook focuses on underlying activity levels, not just seasonal patterns. Regarding dealer destocking, she explained that while inventories have been reduced since last summer, dealers are expected to remain focused on further reductions in Q2 due to high financing costs, though progress has been made.

Asked about the remaining provision for the Russia exit and the timing and potential catalysts for the delayed large orders in the pipeline.

Answer

The Russia provision will be maintained until there is more certainty on settlements. The large order pipeline remains, but timing is uncertain; a more stable interest rate environment would be a positive catalyst for decisions.