FRANKFURT, May 15 (Reuters) - German pharmaceutical and

specialty materials group Merck KGaA on Thursday

guided more cautiously for 2025 earnings, citing the

macro-economic and geopolitical environment as well as

foreign-exchange headwinds.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation

(EBITDA), adjusted for one-off items, would likely reach between

5.8 billion euros ($6.5 billion) and 6.4 billion this year,

compared with 6.07 billion euros reported for 2024.

It had previously issued a target range of between 6.1

billion euros and 6.6 billion.

"The slight adjustment to the guidance in Life Science,

Merck's biggest business sector, is also related to the current

uncertainties around tariffs," the company said in a statement,

referring to a division that makes biotech lab equipment and

supplies.

First-quarter adjusted EBITDA gained 5.6% to 1.54 billion

euros, the group said, slightly ahead of an analyst consensus of

1.51 billion posted on the company's website.

Merck last month struck a deal to buy U.S. biotech company

SpringWorks Therapeutics ( SWTX ) for $3.9 billion to add rare

cancer therapies ahead of expected revenue losses linked to

expiring drug patents.

On Wednesday, it dropped a

surcharge

on orders of lab equipment and substances within China

following the U.S.-China agreement to pause sky-high tariffs on

each other.

($1 = 0.8935 euros)