Can you hear me now? Okay. I think we just started the call again. We have everyone with us, so those of you in the audience, I apologize for that. But you know how technical it is. Never worry when you need it. So.
Send some comments in advance as we go along by email. Please refer to the website at mowi. com for the necessary details. Disclaimer: I think we leave for self-study, so then we are ready for the highlights of the quarter again. As the first bullet point reads, Mowi posted EUR 1.33 billion in operating revenues in the first quarter, which translated into an operational profit of EUR 201 million, which for its sake is in line with the trading update the 18th of April. If we are to sum up the quarter in just a few words, I think it's fair to say it was a rather challenging quarter, biologically, for the largest farming region, Mowi Norway, due to seasonal winter sores and downgrades this time around, significantly compounded by issues with Apolemia or string jellyfish in addition to an unusual cold winter with many storms.
So much tougher environmental conditions than what we are used to in this region. This impacted both our price performance and cost performance significantly in the quarter in the form of a higher share of so-called production fish in addition to lower average harvest weights. As far as our six other farming countries are concerned, biology was good in the quarter, I would say. In terms of the markets, we continue to see strong demand and strong prices for our salmon of European origin, at least salmon of the right size and quality, while regrettably, we still see soft prices for salmon of American origin after a promising start to the new year. So the two-way division of the market we have seen since the second quarter last year and the termination of the last COVID-related benefit schemes in the U.S. seems to continue.
So it looks like the cost of living crisis makes a greater impact on the U.S. markets than on other markets, probably due to a confluence of factors, including the salmon's over-indexation to the food service segment in the American market. But we have been through periods of price divergence between the American and European salmon before, and we strongly believe history will repeat itself also this time around with price convergence when the dust settles and the reestablishment of, once again, one global salmon price adjusted for logistics and quality. So mind you, it's not a question of if. It's a question of when. Otherwise, realized blended farming costs for seven farming countries was, as expected, relatively high in the first quarter due to seasonally low harvest volumes and thereby low dilution of cost in addition to already addressed issues with winter sores in Norway.
On a positive note, however, biology has improved for Mowi Norway in the second quarter. What is more, the feed price, which is the most important input factor by far in salmon farming, is also somewhat down in the new year. It may fall even lower with a normalized anchovy fishery in Peru this year after an El Niño disrupted fishery last year. As of today, we expect a lower cost level for Mowi Farming when we enter the second half of the year. Hopefully, this is some sort of a cost peak after a few years with an unprecedented cost inflation. The second quarter, on the other hand, will, as the first quarter, be seasonally impacted by low harvest volumes and low dilution of cost in addition to knock-on effects of winter sores for Mowi in Norway.
From one thing to another, the FX hit versus our Norwegian first quarter in the wake of the weakening of the NOK we saw last year and the fact that we were a euro company amounted to EUR 10 million in the first quarter. So it's still a considerable amount, although it's gradually diminishing this year, at least as long as the NOK does not weaken further against the euro. In terms of harvest volumes, we harvested 96,500 tons in the first quarter, somewhat lower than our guidance due to primarily a negative harvest volume deviation in Mowi Norway as a result of factors already addressed. Despite this, we still expect that our farming volume guidance of record high 500,000 tons is within reach, which is also supported by a seasonal record high standing biomass in sea at the end of the quarter.
When it comes to two other projects, both consumer product and feed, delivered a reasonably good quarter and a lower market in the U.S. So on balance, I think we landed on our feet after all in a quarter, which I think is fair to say will go down in history as one of our more challenging quarters. So a big thank you to my 11,500 colleagues for that. It's, of course, much appreciated. And finally, the board of directors has decided to distribute a quarterly dividend of 1.50 NOK per share after the first quarter. I think that does it for the highlights of the quarter. So then we are ready to have a look at the key financial numbers. Kristian, we'll go in depth on these numbers later this morning, so that's not to be too repetitive.
I think we'll just touch briefly upon the most important ones now. First, turnover, which we already have been through. Mowi posted EUR 1.33 billion in operating revenues in the first quarter, which translated into an operating profit of EUR 201 million. Net interest-paying debt came at EUR 1.82 billion, which is somewhat above our long-term debt of EUR 1.7 billion. Equity ratio was a healthy 48%-50%, so we still have a sound composition of equity and debt in Mowi. Furthermore, underlying earnings per share was EUR 0.21 in the first quarter, and annualized return on capital employed was 15%. In terms of regional margin value chain, we saw particularly strong margins for our Atlantic, Faroese, and Irish salmon this time around on biology and strong prices for our European salmon, while regrettably, we once again saw soft margins for salmon of American origin due to.
On that note, how long this two-way division of markets for American and European salmon will last. Been through such periods. When the dust settles and the reestablishment, once again, one global salmon price adjusted for logistics and quality. So it's not a question of if. It's a question of when. Then our own price performance in the quarter, which I will characterize as a mixed bag because outside Norway. In Norway, it was good as it oscillated around the reference price, which is the standard we like to hold ourselves to internally. And in the quarter, the reference price was very high, whilst in Norway, it was a very different story due to already addressed issues with winter sores and Apolemia in addition to contracts and contract prices below the prevailing spot price in the quarter.
I also think it's fair to say it was further exacerbated by lack of upgrading capacity in Norway for our downgrades. Bear in mind that our secondary processing capacity is located outside Norway. So within Norway, our upgrading options are confined to filleting compared to at least some of our peers. And export of so-called production fish is, as you know, not allowed. Which brings us to the different business entities. And after this, what could be more natural than to start with Mowi Norway, also by far our largest and most important entity. And if you take the numbers first, operating profit was EUR 138 billion for Mowi Norway in the first quarter. Margin was EUR 2.52 per kilo and harvest volumes 55,000 tons, all of which were negatively impacted by already addressed issues with Apolemia. And sorry again. So we have a lot of technical issues this morning.
We are, unfortunately, in a different venue, so we struggle a little bit to get everything in place. So again, apologize. Back to Mowi Norway. So because of issues with Apolemia and string jellyfish and much more issues than we are used to due to a series of unfortunate circumstances we have already been through, which obviously impacted both our price and cost performance in the quarter. But on a positive note, and as we said on the highlights, biology has improved for Mowi Norway in the second quarter, which obviously helped on both price and cost performance. But as in football, it's always about the next match, always. And as for next winter, we are now vaccinating all our fish in Norway with a new and presumably more effective immunostimulant vaccine, which is a very important preemptive measure in this.
Speaking of measures, we are also taking further preventive measures at sea, and we are looking into our upgrading capacity on land. What is more, there is also reason to believe that this winter's issues with Apolemia or string jellyfish are of temporary nature as it has been 20 years since last time we saw these levels of this species in Norwegian waters. Hopefully, this winter was an example of a perfect storm and a low point in terms of winter sores for Mowi Norway. Shortly about the margins for the different regions for Mowi Norway in the quarter. As you can see from the chart here, we saw a particularly strong margin for Region West this time around. They had almost EUR 1 better margin than the other regions on good biology as well as being less impacted by winter sores and downgrades.
Other than that, I don't think there is much more to say about the regional margins in Mowi Norway in the quarter. So then we are ready for the last slide on Mowi Norway of sales contract and portfolio. Contract share was 32% for Mowi Norway in the first quarter and was, with that, approximately in line with our guidance adjusted for a negative harvest volume deviation in the first quarter. And as I said earlier, these contracts contributed negatively to our earnings in the first quarter. As for the second quarter, we expect contract share to be about 30% at relatively stable prices quarter-over-quarter, contract prices. So then it's time to address the other farming countries. And first one out is Mowi Scotland.
As we guided in connection with the fourth quarter release, biology improved significantly for our Scottish operation in the first quarter on lower seawater temperatures and decimating of pathogens following a challenging second half last year with severe gill issues. This resulted in an operating profit of EUR 32 million for Mowi Scotland in the first quarter on 14,000 tons harvest volumes, which is also up from EUR 27 million in the comparable quarter last year on then 11,000 tons harvest volumes. EBIT margin on the other hand was relatively stable year-over-year at EUR 2.19 per kilo in this quarter versus EUR 2.34 per kilo in the first quarter last year. The second quarter also looks promising for Mowi Scotland on high volumes and continued strong prices for our Scottish salmon. Overseas to Chile.
Mowi Chile delivered another set of strong biological metrics in the first quarter with low mortality and good growth to mention a few. We have also come out of the algae and low DO season reasonably well in Chile with no major biological hits. We have now entered the winter season in Chile, which normally means much lower biological risks, knock on wood. But soft prices, unfortunately, weighed once again on an otherwise strong quarter for Mowi Chile, and operating profit came to only EUR 12 million on our 13,000 tons harvest volumes, which is also down from EUR 60 million last year in the first quarter on then 11,000 tons harvest volumes. EBIT margin is also down year-over-year from EUR 1.51 per kilo to EUR 0.95 per kilo. Soft prices are also a recurring theme for Mowi Canada in the quarter.
On top of that, we also took a hit on cost in the first quarter due to a high share of harvest volumes from Canada East, which resulted in a loss of EUR 2 million in the first quarter, which is substantially down from the EUR 16 million we made in the first quarter last year. We also saw fantastic prices for Canadian salmon. Harvest volumes on the other hand were quite stable year-over-year, 9,000 tons this quarter versus 8,000 tons in the first quarter last year. Other than that, biology was good for Mowi Canada in the first quarter with good growth given the prevailing seawater temperatures. It's always cold in Newfoundland during the winter and low mortality. Which brings us to our two smallest farming entities, Mowi Ireland and Mowi Faroe Islands.
If we start with Mowi Ireland, our Irish operation delivered both strong earnings and margins in the quarter of EUR 4 million and EUR 3.90 per kilo, respectively, partly driven by egg sales. Biology was also once again good for Mowi Ireland in the first quarter. We saw also strong earnings for Mowi Faroes, EUR 9 million in the first quarter by means of a margin of EUR 3.50 per kilo on 2,600 tons harvest volumes. Biological metrics were also strong for Mowi Faroes in the first quarter. The latest addition to the Mowi family, Arctic Fish, our 51% owned Icelandic subsidiary.
After a challenging second half last year, I have to say it's very encouraging to post strong biological metrics for Arctic Fish in the first quarter and a solid margin of EUR 3.79 per kilo, which resulted in an operational profit of EUR 10 million in the quarter on 2,500 tons harvest volumes. Things have also developed well so far in the second quarter for Arctic Fish, but a heads up on realized production cost in the coming quarter due to a very low harvest volume. Other than that, I don't think there is much more to say about Arctic Fish and the first quarter. So then I think we can conclude on Mowi Farming and move on to Consumer Products, our downstream business.
Operating profit was EUR 24 million for Consumer Products in the first quarter, which is down from an unusual strong operating profit of EUR 37 million in the first quarter last year, which is mainly explained by a slower market in Americas and tighter margins in Europe. Otherwise, we continue to see strong demand and strong prices for salmon of European origin, whilst the market for our American salmon is a bit more sluggish. But as we said earlier this morning, we expect things to work themselves out in the American market in due course. Then last one out, Mowi Feed. The first quarter is low season with all that entails for our feed business.
But adjusted for that, I would say the first quarter was another strong quarter for Mowi Feed with increased volumes year-over-year and a pace out of the starting blocks indicating new volume and earnings record for the year. And if you take the numbers, sold volumes were 98,000 tons in the first quarter, which is up by 4,000 tons year-over-year. And operating EBITDA was EUR 6 million in the first quarter, which is in line with the first quarter last year. And feed performance was once again strong in the first quarter, which is, of course, of utmost importance to us as the world's largest farmer by far. So then, Kristian, I think the floor is all yours. You can walk us through the financial figures and fundamentals in depth. Thank you so far.
Thank you very much, Ivan. Good morning, everyone. Hope you're doing well.
I hope that you can hear me loud and clear. As usual, we start with the overview of profit and loss, which shows a top line of EUR 1.33 billion revenue, operational EBIT of EUR 201 million, translated into underlying earnings per share of EUR 0.21, and annualized return of capital employed of 14.7%. With regards to the items between operational EBIT and financial EBIT, the main difference is the net fair value adjustment, which was positive EUR 61 million this time around on higher prices. When it comes to result from associated companies, the operational result from Nova Sea was EUR 3.20 per kilo in Q1, including positive FX effects. This was equivalent to the result in Mowi Region West in the quarter. Financial items were mainly related to interest costs. We move on to the financial position, where the balance sheet was somewhat reduced compared with year-end 2023.
Mowi has a strong financial position with a covenant equity ratio of 51% in Q1. With regards to cash flow, Q1 earnings were partly offset by net working capital tie-up, mainly related to feed inventory, and tax payments on high 2023 earnings. CapEx was reduced from 2023 as several large projects have been completed. When it comes to cash flows, cash flows have been affected by high working capital tie-up in 2022 and 2023, driven by feed inflation. On a positive note, cost to stock is down in Q1 versus Q4. Feed prices are down, approximately 5% in the same period. Note that marine ingredients represent approximately 40% of the feed price and thereby approximately 20% of the full cost-in-box in farming.
This means that the development in raw material prices is key for further improvements in cash cost and working capital, and then, of course, also realized cost. Bear in mind that the entire cost increase we saw last year in Mowi was related to feed inflation as the other inflationary effects were offset by other improvements related to cost improvements, operational improvements, and scale effects from higher volumes. So this means that this is the key to see further improvements now in cost. And with that in mind, it's very positive that we have seen a good quota for this year's first season of the Peruvian anchovy wildcatch. The quota of 2.7 million tons is above normal levels and above the 10-year average, as indicated in the top graph here. Approximately 0.7% is quoted already. And the yields have been good so far.
This indicates a positive outlook for further reductions in marine ingredient prices. Fish oil and fish meal prices are already down 22% from the peak. The backdrop here is that last year's prices for marine ingredients were particularly high, driven by negative El Niño effects. The price drop is illustrated in the graph below here. Looking into the expected P&L cost development ahead, we expect a lower P&L cost level per kilo in the second half versus the first half of 2024 on improved biology and prospects of lower feed prices and positive scale effects. As Ivan already mentioned, Q2 is expected to be impacted by seasonally low volumes and knock-on effects of winter sores in Norway.
When it comes to the full-year cash flow guidance for 2024, we have kept that unchanged versus the Q4 reporting, but with a potential upside, i.e., potentially lower tie-up in working capital depending on the feed price development. In April, we successfully issued two green unsecured bonds. We are glad to state that Mowi has the lowest cost of bond financing in the industry. As part of this process, we obtained an investment-grade rating from NCR. We issued two NOK bonds, but these have been swapped to euro. The first one is a five-year bond amounting to EUR 213 million with a coupon of Euribor plus 1.19%. And the other one is an eight-year bond amounting to EUR 85 million with a coupon of Euribor plus 1.47%. Both are floating after swaps.
This means that we have now performed the refinancing of the 2020 bond of EUR 200 million, which matures in January. We have also improved our liquidity. This slide shows an overview of our financing. This has then been updated with the two bonds amounting to a total of EUR 298 million issued now in April. Then there are no instruments maturing until 2026. We have a 95% sustainable financing, with the remaining instrument being the EUR 150 million Schuldschein. So much for P&L balance sheet and the finance situation. We move on to market fundamentals and start with the industry supply of salmon. Global supply of salmon was relatively stable versus Q1 when adjusted for inventory release. Adjusted for this, supply increased by 0.5%. Volumes from the Norwegian farmers were impacted by winter sores, string jellyfish, and an unusual cold winter.
In Scotland, we saw improvements in survival rates. This provided somewhat higher volumes, while in Chile, volumes were reduced as expected. Both in Norway and Chile, standing biomass is down approximately 2% year-on-year, which indicates muted volume growth ahead. Consumption growth was 4% in EU + U.K. We see strong demand in Europe on continued good retail demand and a stable good level for food service. In the U.S., consumption decreased by 3% on muted demand developments in retail and the food service sector, which has experienced headwinds from increased cost of living. But shelf prices in the U.S. trend down. And we believe this will boost demand from the consumers in the time ahead. This is the dynamics we usually see. The U.S. market has grown by 6% CAGR the last 5 years, doubled the global growth rate.
We expect the current short-term demand fluctuations to work itself out in due course and demand to improve in the U.S. The U.S. is the largest single market. We think that the U.S. presents lots of opportunities for Mowi. Brazil saw good growth in the quarter, driven by food service. In Asia, the recovery in China continued on strong food service developments. This was partly offset by lack of volumes in the rest of the regions. While European prices have been strong, Chilean and Canadian prices have been on the soft side. I would say that at least for Canada, the most recent price developments in America have been positive. We believe that this situation will nevertheless improve in the time ahead.
When it comes to industry supply growth, we estimate low supply growth of only 1% for the industry in 2024, in line with the estimate from Kontali. We expect limited supply growth also in the coming years, around 2% on average. But with regards to our own volume guidance, we maintain the guidance of all-time high 500,000 tons, supported by seasonal record high standing biomass in sea. This means that 2024 is expected to be a continuation of the growth journey we have seen in Mowi now for the last years, with 125,000 tons of mainly organic growth in six years and a CAGR of 4.9% versus the industry at only 2.7%. The key contributor to further organic growth is our extensive post-smolt program, which we now know are beginning to reap the rewards of.
This is also expected to further improve our biological metrics, including survival rates. By the end of 2024, we expect 25% post-smolt coverage for the Mowi group and 50% for Mowi Norway, excluding the naturally more resilient Region North. These slides illustrate various concepts we have with regards to ongoing post-smolt projects in the group. With that, it's over to Ivan for some comments on the outlook.
Thank you for that, Kristian. Much appreciated. Then it's time to conclude with some closing remarks before we wrap it all up with our Q&A session hosted by our IRO, Kim Døsvig.
As said earlier this morning, the first quarter goes down in history as one of our more challenging quarters due to seasonal issues with winter sores and downgrades in Mowi Norway, this time around significantly compounded by issues with Apolemia or string jellyfish, in addition to an unusual cold winter with many storms. On a positive note, however, biology has improved for Mowi Norway in the second quarter. And what is more, the feed price, the most important input factor by far in salmon farming, is also somewhat down in the new year. And it may fall even lower with a normalized anchovy fishery in Peru this year after El Niño disrupted fishery last year. So as of today, we expect a lower cost level for Mowi Farming as we enter the second half of the year.
And hopefully, this is also some sort of a cost peak after a few years with unprecedented cost inflation. The second quarter on the overrun, whereas the first quarter be impacted by seasonally low harvest volumes and low dilution of cost, in addition to knock-on effects of winter sores for Mowi in Norway. In terms of the market, we continue to see strong demand and strong prices for our European salmon, while, regrettably, the market for our American salmon is a bit more sluggish. But as we said earlier this morning, we have been through periods of price divergence between the American and European salmon before. And we strongly believe history will repeat itself also this time around with price convergence when the dust settles and the reestablishment of once again a one global salmon price adjusted for logistics and quality.
So in our view, it's not a question of if. It's a question of when. And furthermore, the supply side looks favorable. In practice, no growth this year and very limited growth in the coming years. So all in all, fundamentals are still looking good in our view. For our part, we have, as Kristian just showed us, maintained our harvest volume guidance of record high 500,000 tons for this year, which is equivalent to a growth of 5.3% year-over-year, which means that once again, our growth rate surpasses that of the wider industry by a large margin. And this volume guidance is also supported by a seasonal record high standing biomass in sea at the end of the quarter.
And last but not least, please save the date of the 25th and 26th of September because then we will arrange our Capital Markets Day in mid-Norway, where we will present our strategic and operational plans for the coming years. And there you will also get the opportunity to have a firsthand look at our 410,000 tons feed factory in Bjugn, our 6,200 tons smolt and post-smolt facility at Nordheim, our brand new state-of-the-art 100,000 tons primary processing plant at Jøsnøya, our remote operations center in mid-Norway, a smart farming concept, site visits, of course, to mention a few. So once again, please save the date of the 25th and 26th of September. I think it will be worth your while. So with this marketing at the end, Kim, I think we are ready for the Q&A session. So if Kristian can, please join me on the floor.
Very good. Thank you, Ivan. We have received some questions from the web. I think this time, we'll start with questions from the audience.
Christian Nordby , Arctic Securities. Can you comment on how superior shares in Norway are today versus the average during Q1?
We are not specific about the numbers as such because it's commercially sensitive, obviously. But it's better. And it's gradually increasing. So the second quarter is a recovery quarter in terms of quality, in terms of harvest rates, growth, et cetera. We are back on track. So things are looking much better in Mowi Norway in the second quarter. And as for the six other farming countries, things are still looking good. And the first quarter was excellent. So we apologize for the first quarter. But sometimes, nature hits. And it did this time around. What was unusual this time was that it happened in Norway. We are not used to that.
When it comes to Chile, we've seen for a number of months that there's been weak smolt stocking. Do you think that now that we have El Niño behind us, that we will see higher smolt stockings in Chile?
I think Chile has reached to a point now where we won't see any substantial growth. For our part, we will continue to grow gradually as we have done over the past few years. I think for Mowi, you can think of the growth trajectory you have seen. For the rest, I think we have reached to some kind of a level where not much will happen, at least in the coming few years. In the longer term, I don't know. It depends on technology, regulation, et cetera.
Thank you.
Welcome.
OK. Then continuing with some questions from the web, Alexander Sloane, Barclays. He has also a question on winter sores. But more specifically, what's the outlook for next year given the new vaccine?
Yeah. So no one knows, of course. But we strongly believe things will be much better next year. We do. Now, we have a new vaccine in place. And if we take history into account, all ways out of previous disease issues in this industry have been through vaccines. I think that will also be the solution this time around. And what was very special this year was the jellyfish. So that compounded the issues with winter sores significantly. And then I really mean significantly. And we didn't see this coming. We were not prepared. So next time, we are also prepared with regard to jellyfish. So we have several preventive measures we can take. So I strongly believe that next time, we stand here. So one year ahead, we will talk about much better, superior quality numbers for Mowi Norway.
OK. And then his second question is on the 2024 volume guidance. Do you have any buffer left if biological challenges pick up year-over-year? And can you comment on the biomass development?
Yeah. No, of course, our reserves, they are shrinking. But if you take the biomass we have in sea, use last year and add it up, then I think you end at 500, maybe 501. Depends on how you calculate. So if things can be in line with last year, I think we are good. But of course, there are also limits for us in terms of buffers. So in this industry, everything can happen. But last year wasn't great. So I strongly believe in these numbers, I got to say. And as of today, it's the best estimate. But if, of course, big things happen, then it will impact it. That's the name of the game.
Martin Kaland ABG Sundal Collier. You talk about expanding your processing capacity in Norway for upgrading fish with winter sores. What kind of upgrades are you talking about? Any meaningful CapEx adding on filleting lines to existing facilities or new facilities?
Yes, to the last part of your question and no to the first part. And if I shall repeat the question, so no additional CapEx. And yes, we are increasing our filleting capacity in Norway. So we are doubling it year-over-year. So we are taking all the measures we can, right? So we do not put all our eggs in one basket. We introduce vaccine. We take preventive measures at sea. We are increasing our upgrading capacity. So I cannot guarantee anything. But we do everything in our power to avoid such a situation again because this is the core of our business. So we have seven farming countries. But Norway is and will always be number one region for Mowi Norway. And we are used to very different numbers than what we are reporting this time around. So then we take actions.
Alexander Aukner DNB. So in the U.S. market, you say demand is a bit sluggish. Is it possible to give some more color? Is it certain products? Is it the high end? Is it the low end? Yeah. So just some additional color on sort of why it's sluggish.
Yeah. So we see that there is somewhat more headwinds related to prepacked products, natural, fresh. But we also see that we have now several quarters with downwards adjustments of and retail prices, 3%, 2%, and then last quarter, 1%. So I would say that these numbers suggest that we should see some boosting effects on demand in the U.S. in the time ahead. But it's no question that it has been a little bit sluggish so far. I would say that bulk salmon has offset some of these developments in prepacked and natural, fresh. But the overall price development is for everyone to see. But we are confident that this situation is temporary. And this will improve in the time ahead.
Then one question from the web, Alexander Jones, Bank of America. He's got a question on the markets division for you, Kristian. If the markets had a very strong quarter, then how much of this is sustainable versus how much is the one-off perhaps linked to the strong trading activity in the quarter?
Yeah. So we have done reviews of agreements and of the setup. So we believe that you will see higher earnings in the market segment versus what has been the history in Mowi. So I would say that, of course, in general, you will see higher earnings. But note that the upgrading effects we have had now in Norway in the first quarter related to filleting, they have been included then in the market segment. So that means also that due to the special winter sores situation this time around, there is an extra effect related to that. Yeah. So this time around, there is two effects, I would say, in general, a review of agreements and the setup and a special filleting effect. And yeah. So I think we can leave it at that so far.
Then one last question from the web, back to Barclays and Alexander Sloan on cost. 20% cost in box is marine feed. Prices are down 20% from peak. Can we assume material cost reduction into next year, all else being equal?
Yeah. 20%, I think that's volume-wise. Cost-wise, I think it's 40%. But we have only guided on the second half where we believe in a cost reduction, which also we have support in our numbers. Next year is very early days. We have a second half. Biologically, we have to work ourselves through. So it's hard to say. But during the presentation, we said that we hope this is some sort of a cost peak after a few years with unprecedented inflation. So indirectly, we also suggest that, yeah, we hope that we can see a drop also next year. But for our sake, we don't know. So we have any numbers saying that. So this is just us looking into a crystal ball where we also include some hope. So take it for what it is. But for the second half, we have support in our numbers.
So unless nothing goes wrong significantly, I think we will see that. If not, I will be disappointed.
OK. That concludes the Q&A.
OK. Then it only remains for me to thank everyone for the attention. We hope to see you back already in August on our second quarter release. We also hope to see some of you in Region Mid at our Capital Markets Day in the 25th and 26th of September. Thank you.