Paint and coatings maker Akzo Nobel saw turnover and net profit fall but operating profit rise in 2014, the company announced on Thursday.

Net profit over the year fell 25% to €546m. Turnover was down 2% to €14.3bn, although the company was able to increase the profit margin on its products.

Operating profit rose 20% to €1,072bn, slightly above the expectations of analysts.

‘It was a challenging year,’ CEO Ton Bücher said in a statement. ‘The continuing lack of economic growth in Europe affected our performance, but the company is still on course to achieve our goals for 2015.’