BASF Group’s strong business development continued in the third quarter of 2021 as demand for BASF’s products remained solid over the summer months.

At €19.7 billion, sales were €5.9 billion higher than in the prior-year quarter. This was largely attributable to higher prices in all segments, especially in Chemicals, Surface Technologies and Materials. The sales growth was also due to a significant increase in volumes in almost all segments.

At €1.9 billion, income from operations (EBIT) before special items was €1.3 billion higher than the level of the third quarter of 2020. This was mainly driven by the significantly higher EBIT before special items in the Chemicals segment.

“This enabled us to continue to grow profitably,” said Dr. Martin Brudermüller, BASF’s chairman of the board of executive directors, who presented the results of the third quarter together with CFO Dr. Hans-Ulrich Engel. “Compared with the third quarter of the previous year, we increased prices by 36% and volumes by 6%,” Brudermüller said.

“With strong earnings contributions from the Chemicals and Materials segments, the earnings mix in the third quarter of 2021 was comparable with the second quarter of 2021,” added Brudermüller. “Our downstream businesses are still confronted with further rising raw material, energy and freight costs. Price increases in most downstream businesses could only partially offset these higher costs.”

EBIT amounted to €1.8 billion, considerably above the figure of minus €2.6 billion reported in the prior-year quarter. This figure includes income from integral companies accounted for using the equity method, which rose by €144 million to €200 million, due largely to the higher earnings contribution from BASF-YPC Company Ltd., Nanjing, China.

At €1.3 billion, net income was €3.4 billion higher than in the prior-year quarter. Earnings per share amounted to €1.36 in the third quarter of 2021 (third quarter 2020: minus €2.31). Earnings per share adjusted for special items and amortization of intangible assets amounted to €1.56 (third quarter 2020: €0.60).

Cash flows from operating activities amounted to €1.9 billion in the third quarter of 2021, €204 million below the figure for the prior-year quarter. Free cash flow was €1.1 billion, which reflects a €287 million decrease from the figure from the prior-year quarter due primarily to lower cash flows from operating activities.

The global economy continued to recover in the third quarter of 2021 following the sharp decline in economic activity in the previous year. However, growth momentum slowed compared with the previous quarter due to supply bottlenecks in many value chains of the manufacturing sector. Further pandemic-related disruptions in production and logistics in Asia intensified the scarcity of precursors worldwide.

The global automotive industry was especially affected by a chip shortage that led to significant drops in production. In addition, power cuts in some provinces of China had a negative impact on production, especially in energy-intensive industries. Global demand for consumables and consumer durables remained stable despite the burden of rising energy prices on companies as well as on end users.