BASF (IW 1000/33), the world's biggest chemical maker, said Thursday it was still projecting record sales and profits this year, despite a drop in its bottom-line profit in the third quarter.
"After a solid first half, BASF maintained good business performance overall in the third quarter," the group said.
Chief executive Kurt Bock said that BASF did not anticipate an upturn in the global economy or in demand in its chemicals business for the fourth quarter of 2012.
Nevertheless, "we still aim to exceed the 2011 record levels in sales and underlying profit, as measured by earnings before interest and tax and special items," Bock said.
In the third quarter, underlying profit rose by 5.4% to 2.07 billion euros (US$2.7 billion) on an 8% increase in sales to 19.01 billion euros.
However, net profit fell by 20.6% to 946 million euros in the July-September period.
"In the past quarter, the outlook for the world economy has once again not improved and the uncertainty on the international capital markets continues," CEO Bock said.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2012
