The chemical giant’s sales fell significantly in the first quarter.
(Photo: dpa)
Frankfurt The Ludwigshafen-based chemical giant BASF earned significantly better than analysts had expected in the first quarter despite a slump in operating profits. Earnings before interest, taxes and special items (EBIT) fell by almost a third to 1.93 (2022: 2.82) billion euros, BASF announced on Wednesday. Analysts surveyed by the company had only expected an average of 1.6 billion.
Above all, the agricultural business turned out to be significantly better than expected, whereas the food division performed weaker than expected. Sales fell by 13 percent to 19.99 billion euros, well below analyst forecasts.
The bottom line is that profits jumped by 28 percent to 1.56 billion euros, as BASF explained on the basis of preliminary figures. A year ago, write-downs on the stake in the oil and gas producer Wintershall Dea in the wake of the Ukraine war weighed on earnings.