Regions

3rd Quarter 2018

Sales at companies located in Europe rose by 3% compared with the third quarter of 2017. This was attributable to higher sales prices in almost all segments. Lower volumes and negative currency effects had an offsetting effect. Income from operations (EBIT) declined by €325 million to €659 million. The considerable earnings increase in Other and in the Functional Materials & Solutions segment was unable to compensate for the significantly lower contributions from the Chemicals, Performance Products and Agricultural Solutions segments.

In North America, we improved sales by 21% in local currency terms and 22% in euros. This was mainly driven by higher volumes, especially in the Functional Materials & Solutions and Chemicals segments, higher prices and portfolio effects in the Agricultural Solutions segment. Currency effects also had a positive impact on sales. At €171 million, EBIT was up €12 million year on year, primarily as a result of the significantly higher contribution from the Chemicals segment.

Sales in Asia Pacific rose by 2% in both local currency terms and in euros. This was attributable to higher prices in all segments except Chemicals. Sales were weighed down by lower volumes in particular. EBIT decreased by €155 million to €481 million due to lower contributions from all segments compared with the third quarter of 2017.

In the region South America, Africa, Middle East, we increased sales by 26% in local currency terms and 6% in euros compared with the prior-year quarter. This was mainly due to higher prices in all segments. Volumes growth and portfolio effects also contributed to the positive sales development. By contrast, currency effects had a negative impact on sales. At €84 million, EBIT exceeded the figure for the third quarter of 2017 by €39 million. The increase was primarily driven by the Agricultural Solutions segment.