BASF announced its result in the third quarter 2026. Sales increased by 14% compared with the prior-year quarter to reach €16.4 billion. The increase was mainly driven by considerably higher prices (+12%) and slightly higher volumes (+2%).

BASF now expects EBITDA before special items of between €7.4 billion and €7.8 billion in the 2026 business year (previous forecast from Half-Year Financial Report 2026: €6.9-7.7 billion).

Sales up due to higher prices and volumes

Sales in the third quarter of 2026 amounted to €16.4 billion, €2 billion above the prior-year period’s figure.

This was mainly due to considerably higher prices in the Chemicals, Materials, Surface Technologies and Industrial Solutions segments. Prices improved slightly in Nutrition & Care, while Agricultural Solutions recorded a slight decline in prices.

Volumes increased substantially in the Chemicals and Nutrition & Care segments and slightly in the Industrial Solutions, Materials and Surface Technologies segments. A significant decline in volumes in the Agricultural Solutions segment had a dampening effect.

EBITDA and EBITDA before special item

EBITDA before special items increased by €213 million compared with the prior-year quarter to €1.6 billion. This was due to the considerable earnings increase in the Chemicals, Nutrition & Care, Materials and Industrial Solutions segments, which more than offset the decline in earnings in Agricultural Solutions and Surface Technologies.

EBITDA before special items in Other decreased considerably compared with the prior-year period.

EBITDA amounted to €1.2 billion in the third quarter of 2026, matching the level recorded in the prior-year period. EBITDA included special items totaling minus €437 million in the third quarter of 2026.

These resulted in particular from transformation expenses for restructuring measures, primarily at the Ludwigshafen site, as well as from a settlement of a legal dispute in the Care Chemicals division.

Outlook for 2026

As the business year has progressed and there is greater visibility regarding the expected earnings development, BASF is able to provide a more specific forecast range for BASF Group’s EBITDA before special items for the 2026 business year than was published in the BASF Half-Year Financial Report 2026.

Compared with the previous forecast, BASF has raised the lower end of the EBITDA before special items range to €7.4-7.8 billion (previous forecast: €6.9-7.7 billion).