Ladies and Gentlemen,

I warmly welcome you to this year’s Financial Press Conference, here at the Haus der Bayerischen Wirtschaft (House of the Bavarian Economy). Like many other corporations, Allianz is continually being restructured. This is not just a general statement. Our own conference facility is being rebuilt, even as we sit here. We are delighted, however, to have found such a congenial and modern alternative.

I should like to offer a very special welcome to all our guests from abroad – to the international foreign correspondents, the visiting French journalists, who have already come to know us quite well, and the representatives of the media from Asia, who have come to see us in Munich for the first time.

This year’s Financial Press Conference is a true reflection of the international profile of Allianz. As you know: global presence is extremely important to Allianz. Our company is in the process of entering a new dimension. This development is not only leading to a new understanding at Allianz, but also to new pathways in communications and global marketing. But before I move on to address the undoubtedly fascinating subject of Formula 1, I should like to give you a broad outline of the key issues that we are going to be dealing with today...