24 – Liabilities

On December 14, 2016, BASF SE issued a 2.67% NOK bond effective January 3, 2017, in the amount of NOK 1,600 million with an annual effective interest rate of 2.69% and term of 12 years.

Other bonds

Other bonds consist primarily of industrial revenue and pollution control bonds of the BASF Corporation group that were used to finance investments in the United States. Both the weighted-average interest rate of these bonds as well as their weighted-average effective interest rate amounted to 2.1% in 2016 and 1.5% in 2015. The average residual term amounted to 195 months as of December 31, 2016 (December 31, 2015: 210 months).

Liabilities to credit institutions

In order to finance the natural gas transportation business, a €1,650 million loan was incurred with a 5-year term at an interest rate of 1.08% in 2014.

The weighted average interest rate on loans amounted to 4.5% in 2016 compared with 4.9% in 2015.

Unused credit lines

BASF SE had committed and unused credit lines with variable interest rates amounting to €6,000 million both as of December 31, 2016 and as of December 31, 2015.

Other liabilities

The increase in other liabilities mainly related to higher, current negative fair market values arising from the hedging of combined interest and currency swaps on the U.S. dollar and Brazilian real as well as foreign currency forward contracts for U.S. dollar and Brazilian real as well as euro and U.S. dollar.

Liabilities to credit institutions were secured primarily with registered land charges. The increase in secured other liabilities compared with December 31, 2015, is primarily attributable to higher collateral for derivative instruments with negative fair values. As in the previous year, there were no secured contingent liabilities in 2016.