including disruptions due to governmental responses to such conflicts (such as the imposition of sanctions, retaliatory tariffs, increased business licensing requirements or limitations on profits), such disruptions could adversely impact our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
The war between Russia and Ukraine has adversely impacted and could continue to adversely impact our business and financial results.
The war between Russia and Ukraine has negatively impacted, and the situation it generates may continue to negatively impact, our operations. Beginning in March 2022, the Company reduced its product portfolio, discontinued new capital investments and suspended media, advertising and promotional activity in Russia. Future impacts to the Company are difficult to predict due to the high level of uncertainty as to how the overall situation will evolve. Within Ukraine, there is a possibility of physical damage and destruction of our two manufacturing facilities, our distribution centers or those of our customers. We may not be able to operate our manufacturing sites and source raw materials from our suppliers or ship finished products to our customers. Within Russia, we may reduce further or discontinue our operations due to sanctions and export controls and counter-sanctions, monetary, currency or payment controls, restrictions on access to financial institutions, supply and transportation challenges or other circumstances and considerations. Ultimately, these could result in loss of assets or impairments of our manufacturing plants and fixed assets or write-downs of other operating assets and working capital.
The war between Russia and Ukraine could also amplify or affect the other risk factors set forth in this Risk Factors section, including, but not limited to, foreign exchange volatility, disruptions to the financial and credit markets, energy supply and supply chain disruptions, increased risks of an information security or operational technology incident, cost fluctuations and commodity cost increases and increased costs to ensure compliance with global and local laws and regulations. The occurrence of any of these risks, combined with the increased impact from the war between Russia and Ukraine, could adversely impact our business and financial results.
More broadly, there could be additional negative impacts to our net sales, earnings and cash flows should the situation worsen, including, among other potential impacts, economic recessions in certain neighboring countries or globally due to inflationary pressures, energy and supply chain cost increases or the geographic proximity of the war relative to the rest of Europe.
BUSINESS OPERATIONS RISKS
Our business results depend on our ability to manage disruptions in our global supply chain.
Our ability to meet our customers’ needs and achieve cost targets depends on our ability to maintain key manufacturing and supply arrangements, including execution of supply chain optimizations and certain sole supplier or sole manufacturing plant arrangements. The loss or disruption of such manufacturing and supply arrangements, including for issues such as labor disputes or controversies, loss or impairment of key manufacturing sites, discontinuity or disruptions in our internal information and data systems or those of our suppliers, cybersecurity incidents, inability to procure sufficient raw or input materials (including water, recycled materials and materials that meet our labor standards), significant changes in trade policy, natural disasters, increasing severity or frequency of extreme weather events due to climate change or otherwise, acts of war or terrorism, disease outbreaks or other external factors over which we have no control, have at times interrupted and could, in the future, interrupt product supply and, if not effectively managed and remedied, could have an adverse impact on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
Our businesses face cost fluctuations and pressures that could affect our business results.
Our costs are subject to fluctuations, particularly due to changes in the prices of commodities (including certain petroleum-derived materials like resins and paper-based materials like pulp) and raw and packaging materials and the costs of labor, transportation (including trucks and containers), energy, pension and healthcare.
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