1.3 – Group accounting principles

Scope of consolidation: The scope of consolidation is based on the application of the standards IFRS 10 and 11.

According to IFRS 10, a group consists of a parent entity and the subsidiaries controlled by the parent. “Control” of an investee assumes the simultaneous fulfillment of the following three criteria:

• The parent company holds decision-making power over the relevant activities of the investee,
• The parent company has rights to variable returns from the investee, and
• The parent company can use its decision-making power to affect the variable returns.

Based on corporate governance and potential supplementary agreements, companies are analyzed for their relevant activities and variable returns, and the link between the variable returns and the extent to which their relevant activities could be influenced.

According to IFRS 11, which regulates the accounting of joint arrangements, a distinction must be made between joint ventures and joint operations. In the case of a joint venture, the parties that have joint control of a legally independent company have rights to the net assets of that arrangement. In joint operations, the parties that have joint control have direct rights to the assets and obligations for the liabilities relating to the arrangement. This requirement is particularly fulfilled if the production output of the joint arrangement is almost entirely transferred to the partners, through which the partners guarantee the joint arrangements’ ongoing financing.

Companies whose corporate governance structures classify them as joint arrangements are analyzed to determine if they meet the criteria for joint ventures or joint operations as per IFRS 11. This requires an analysis of the joint arrangement’s structure and, if the arrangement is structured through a separate vehicle, its legal form, contractual arrangements and all other facts and circumstances are reviewed.

Consolidation: In addition to BASF SE, the Consolidated Financial Statements include all material subsidiaries on a fully consolidated and all material joint operations on a proportionally consolidated basis. Companies whose business is dormant or of low volume, and are of secondary importance for the presentation of a true and fair view of the net assets, financial position and results of operations, are not consolidated, but rather are reported under other shareholdings. These companies are carried at amortized cost and are written down in the case of an impairment. The aggregate assets and equity of these companies amount to less than 1% of the corresponding value at the Group level.

Joint ventures and associated companies are accounted for using the equity method in the Consolidated Financial Statements. Associated companies are entities in which significant influence can be exercised over their operating and financial policies and which are not subsidiaries, joint ventures or joint operations. In general, this applies to companies in which BASF has an investment of between 20% and 50%. Equity-accounted income is reported as part of income from operations (EBIT).

Consolidation methods: Assets and liabilities of consolidated companies are uniformly recognized and measured in accordance with the principles described herein. For equity-accounted companies, material deviations in measurement resulting from the application of other accounting principles are adjusted for.

Transactions between consolidated companies as well as intercompany profits resulting from trade between consolidated companies are eliminated in full; for joint operations, they are proportionally eliminated. Material intercompany profits related to companies accounted for using the equity method are eliminated.

Capital consolidation is conducted at the acquisition date according to the purchase method. Initially, all assets, liabilities and additional intangible assets that are to be capitalized are measured at fair value. Finally, the acquisition cost is compared with the proportional share of the net assets acquired at fair value. The resulting positive differences are capitalized as goodwill. Negative differences are reviewed once more, then recognized directly in the income statement.

The incidental acquisition costs of a business combination are recognized in the income statement under other operating expenses.

Foreign currency translations: The cost of assets acquired in foreign currencies and revenue from sales in foreign currencies are determined by the exchange rate on the date of the transaction. Foreign currency receivables and liabilities are valued at the exchange rates on the balance sheet date. Changes in assets and liabilities arising from foreign currency translation are recognized in the income statement and reported under other operating expenses or income, other financial result, and available-for-sale financial assets in other comprehensive income.

Translation of foreign currency financial statements: The translation of foreign currency financial statements depends on the functional currency of the consolidated companies. For companies whose functional currency is not the euro but a local currency, translation into the reporting currency is based on the closing rate method: Balance sheet items are translated into euros using closing rates on the balance sheet date; expenses and income are translated into euros at monthly average rates and accumulated for the year. The difference between a company’s translated equity at historical rates at the time of acquisition and its equity at closing rates on the balance sheet date is reported separately in equity under other comprehensive income (translation adjustments) and is recognized in income only upon the company’s disposal.

For certain companies outside the eurozone or U.S. dollar zone, the euro or U.S. dollar is the functional currency. In such cases the translation into the functional currency of financial statements prepared in the local currency is done according to the temporal method: All nonmonetary assets and related depreciation and amortization as well as equity are translated at the exchange rate applying to the respective transactions. All other balance sheet items are translated using closing rates on the balance sheet date; other expenses and income are translated at monthly average rates. The resulting translation differences are recognized in the income statement under other operating income or expenses. If necessary, financial statements in the functional currency are translated into the presentation currency according to the closing rate method.