^{BASF Group in third quarter 2026:}
Strength across all core businesses drives BASF Group’s considerable growth in EBITDA before special items 

• Sales: €16.4 billion (Q3 2025: €14.3 billion)
• EBITDA before special items: €1.6 billion (Q3 2025: €1.4 billion) 
• Outlook 2026: EBITDA before special items of between €7.4 billion and €7.8 billion (previous forecast: €6.9 billion to €7.7 billion)

BASF delivered another strong quarter. Sales increased by 14 percent compared with the prior-year quarter to reach €16.4 billion. The increase was mainly driven by considerably higher prices (plus 12%) and slightly higher volumes (plus 2%). At €1.6 billion, EBITDA before special items rose significantly by 15 percent compared with the third quarter of 2025. All core businesses contributed to this. 

“The strong year-to-date performance of our core businesses gives us confidence to narrow our forecast range for EBITDA before special items upward,” said Dr. Markus Kamieth, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF, when presenting the figures for the third quarter of 2026 together with Chief Financial Officer Dr. Dirk Elvermann. 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: between €6.9 billion and €7.7 billion).

BASF Group’s business development in the third quarter of 2026

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. Positive currency effects in all segments, especially relating to the U.S. dollar and the Chinese renminbi, contributed to the sales increase. Sales in Other improved considerably.

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. At 10.0 percent, the EBITDA margin before special items was at the level of 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.

EBIT stood at minus €98 million, compared with €232 million in the prior-year quarter. Depreciation and amortization amounted to €1.3 billion (Q3 2025: €976 million), including an impairment in the Monomers division (€318 million). 

Net income amounted to €155 million (Q3 2025: €172 million). Earnings per share came in at €0.18 in the third quarter of 2026 (Q3 2025: €0.19). Earnings per share adjusted for special items and amortization of intangible assets were €0.72 (Q3 2025: €0.52).

In the third quarter of 2026, cash flows from operating activities amounted to €1.1 billion, €275 million below the level of the prior-year quarter. The decrease was mainly attributable to €507 million cash being tied up in inventories, predominantly as a result of higher raw materials prices, whereas €6 million had been released in the prior-year period. 

Cash flows from investing activities amounted to minus €89 million, compared with minus €767 million in the prior-year quarter. This change was attributable in part to payments of €434 million received from the disposal of shares in Harbour Energy. Moreover, payments made for intangible assets and property, plant and equipment decreased by €401 million, mainly owing to lower payments relating to the Verbund site in Zhanjiang, China. Free cash flow amounted to €523 million in the third quarter of 2026, up by €125 million compared with the level of the prior-year quarter.

BASF Group outlook for 2026

Given the continuing uncertainty surrounding further geopolitical and global economic developments, BASF maintains the macroeconomic assumptions published in the Half-Year Financial Report 2026:

• Growth in gross domestic product: 2.5 percent
• Growth in industrial production: 2.0 percent 
• Growth in chemical production: 1.8 percent
• Average euro/dollar exchange rate of $1.17 per euro
• Average annual oil price (Brent crude) of $80 per barrel

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 and slightly increased the upper end (previous forecast from the Half-Year Financial Report 2026 in parentheses):

• EBITDA before special items of between €7.4 billion and €7.8 billion (between €6.9 billion and €7.7 billion)
• Free cash flow of between €1.5 billion and €2.3 billion (unchanged)
• CO₂ emissions of between 17.2 million metric tons and 18.2 million metric tons (unchanged) 

 About BASF

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. Our ambition: We want to be the preferred chemical company to enable our customers’ green transformation. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Around 95,000 employees in the BASF Group contribute to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio comprises, as core businesses, the segments Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, and Nutrition & Care; our standalone businesses are bundled in the segments Surface Technologies and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of around €60 billion in 2025. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the United States. Further information at www.basf.com.

On October 28, 2026, you can obtain further information from the internet at the following addresses: