I need to estimate S&P's adjusted leverage (Net Debt / EBITDA) for 2022 and 2021, then determine the trend.

## Step 1: Calculate Net Debt

**Net Debt = Financial Debt - Cash and Cash Equivalents**

For financial debt, I need to identify interest-bearing liabilities:

**At 2023-01-01 (end of 2022):**
- Other Noncurrent Financial Liabilities: 3,658M EUR
- Other Current Financial Liabilities: 4,127M EUR
- Total Financial Debt: 3,658 + 4,127 = 7,785M EUR
- Cash (Liquid Funds): 3,919M EUR
- Net Debt = 7,785 - 3,919 = 3,866M EUR

**At 2022-01-01 (end of 2021):**
- Other Noncurrent Financial Liabilities: 8,701M EUR
- Other Current Financial Liabilities: 8,519M EUR
- Total Financial Debt: 8,701 + 8,519 = 17,220M EUR
- Cash (Liquid Funds): 7,592M EUR
- Net Debt = 17,220 - 7,592 = 9,628M EUR

## Step 2: Calculate EBITDA

The data provides "Operating Profit Before Depreciations (EBITDA)":

**2022 (2022-01-01 to 2023-01-01):** 1,842M EUR
**2021 (2021-01-01 to 2022-01-01):** 4,913M EUR

However, for S&P adjusted figures, I should consider using Comparable EBITDA which strips out items affecting comparability:

**Comparable EBITDA 2022:** 2,436M EUR
**Comparable EBITDA 2021:** 2,016M EUR

S&P typically adjusts for non-recurring items, so Comparable EBITDA is more appropriate.

## Step 3: Calculate Net Debt / EBITDA

**2022 (using end-2022 net debt and 2022 EBITDA):**
- Net Debt / Comparable EBITDA = 3,866 / 2,436 = 1.59x

**2021 (using end-2021 net debt and 2021 EBITDA):**
- Net Debt / Comparable EBITDA = 9,628 / 2,016 = 4.78x

The change: 1.59x - 4.78x = -3.19x

This is a massive improvement (decrease in leverage by over 3x), largely driven by the significant reduction in debt (likely related to the disposal of the Uniper segment - discontinued operations).

Even using reported EBITDA:
- 2022: 3,866 / 1,842 = 2.10x
- 2021: 9,628 / 4,913 = 1.96x
- Change: +0.14x → Stable

But the reported EBITDA in 2021 includes large items affecting comparability (2,897M), which are non-recurring. S&P would likely strip these out.

Using Comparable EBITDA, the leverage clearly improved dramatically from ~4.78x to ~1.59x, a decrease of ~3.19x, which is well beyond the -0.3x threshold for "Improving."

The massive deleveraging from debt reduction (related to Uniper divestiture and restructuring) combined with improved comparable operating performance makes this clearly improving.

<answer>Improving</answer>