Chemicals maker BASF sees Q2 earnings triple

Second-quarter profits at BASF SE more than tripled as a recovering global economy boosted demand and industry restocked inventories after the recession, the chemicals company said Thursday.

BASF reported a net profit of euro1.18 billion ($1.5 billion) in the April-June period, up from euro343 million a year earlier.

Revenues rose nearly 30 percent to euro16.21 billion from euro12.5 billion. BASF, based in Ludwigshafen, has interests in plastics, chemicals, oil and gas and agriculture.

BASF expects to increase its sales for the full year and outpace global chemical production, CEO Juergen Hambrecht said. Pretax earnings should "improve considerably" and the company expects to pay a higher dividend this year, he added.

Hambrecht expects the economic recovery to continue "at a moderate pace" in the second half, BASF said in a statement.

However, it cautioned that demand will be dampened by budget-cutting efforts around the world as governments work to unwind their debts and by the winding down of stimulus programs.

In the second quarter, BASF said it was helped by customers moving to restock their own inventories as well as by high demand.

BASF said second-quarter revenues at its chemicals segment grew by 64 percent over a weak quarter a year ago to euro2.97 billion. The plastics segment generated revenues of euro2.58 billion, a 48 percent increase, and the company said the division also was helped by restructuring efforts.

The only segment to see a decrease in revenues was oil and gas, which reported a 3 percent decline to euro2.37 billion. BASF said the sector was more profitable because of volume increases in natural gas trading, but pointed to OPEC production restrictions in Libya as a factor weighing on revenues.

BASF shares were up 0.6 percent at euro45.59 in morning Frankfurt trading.