General information

Accounting policies and restatements

The full-year 2015 numbers included in the primary statements are derived from the financial statements 2015. These financial statements have been authorized for issue. The financial statements have not yet been published by law and still have to be adopted by the general meeting of shareholders. In accordance with section 393 of Book 2 of the Netherlands Civil Code, KPMG Accountants N.V. has issued an unqualified auditor’s opinion on these financial statements, which will be published on February 23, 2016. All quarterly figures are unaudited. In 2015 some new IFRS have been implemented, however, these have not had any impact on our Consolidated financial statements. Otherwise the accounting principles are as applied in the 2014 financial statements.

Seasonality

Revenue and results in Decorative Paints are impacted by seasonal influences. Revenue and profitability tend to be higher in the second and third quarter of the year as weather conditions determine whether paints and coatings can be applied. In Performance Coatings, revenue and profitability vary with building patterns from original equipment manufacturers. In Specialty Chemicals, the Functional Chemicals and the Surface Chemistry businesses experience seasonal influences. Revenue and profitability are affected by developments in the agricultural season and tend to be higher in the first half of the year.

Other activities

In other activities, we report activities which are not allocated to a particular Business Area. Corporate costs are the unallocated costs of our head office and shared services center in the Netherlands and also include country holdings. Pensions reflects pension costs after the elimination of interest cost (reported as financing expenses). Insurances are the results from our captive insurance companies. Other costs include the cost of share-based compensation, the results of treasury and legacy operations.