Pic: BASF
In FY22, BASF's income from operations (EBIT) before special items was 11.5 per cent below the prior-year figure, declining to €6.9 billion. The earnings development was attributable to a strong decline in earnings contributions from the chemicals and materials segments. EBIT before special items rose in all other segments. BASF Group's operational earnings were burdened by additional energy costs of €3.2 billion globally in 2022.
Net income for the BASF Group was minus €627 million in FY22, compared with €5.5 billion in FY21.
In the fourth quarter of FY22, BASF Group sales decreased by 2.3 per cent to €19.3 billion, mainly on account of lower volumes. Fourth-quarter EBIT before special items fell by 69.6 per cent to €373 million compared with the prior-year quarter.
EBIT decreased by 90.3 per cent to €119 million in Q4 FY22. Net income amounted to minus €4.8 billion compared with €898 million in the fourth quarter of FY21.
Looking ahead to FY23, the company expects to generate sales of between €84 billion and €87 billion, with EBIT before special items declining to between €4.8 billion and €5.4 billion. BASF expects a weak first half of FY23, followed by an improved earnings environment in the second half of the fiscal due to recovery effects, especially in China.
“Europe’s competitiveness is increasingly suffering from overregulation, slow and bureaucratic permitting processes, and in particular, high costs for most production input factors,” said Martin Brudermuller, chairman of the board of executive directors. “All this has already hampered market growth in Europe in comparison with other regions. High energy prices are now putting an additional burden on profitability and competitiveness in Europe.”
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)