BASF Group 2026 Outlook

For 2026, BASF Group projects EBITDA before special items to be between €6.2 billion and €7.0 billion (€6.6 billion in 2025). Earnings in the Nutrition & Care and Chemicals segments are expected to rise significantly; Industrial Solutions is forecast to achieve moderate earnings growth. Earnings in Materials and Agricultural Solutions are expected to decline slightly due to currency effects. In Surface Technologies, EBITDA before special items is expected to decrease markedly, mainly because the onetime positive impact from the Environmental Catalysts and Metal Solutions business in 2025 is not expected to recur in 2026.

BASF Group’s free cash flow is forecast to range from €1.5 billion to €2.3 billion (€1.3 billion in 2025).This projection is based on expected cash flow from operating activities of between €4.9 billion and €5.7 billion, minus expected expenditures of €3.4 billion for property, plant and equipment as well as intangible assets.

The Group’s CO₂ emissions are expected to range from 17.2 million to 18.2 million metric tons in 2026.This represents an increase compared with the previous year, mainly due to the startup of the Verbund site in Zhanjiang, China, while production at other sites remains largely stable.BASF will implement targeted emission reduction measures to counteract this increase, including improving energy efficiency, optimizing production processes, and continuing the transition to electricity from renewable sources.

BASF’s outlook is based on the following assumptions for the global economic environment in 2026:

• Global gross domestic product (GDP) growth: 2.7%
• Global industrial production growth: 2.3%
• Global chemical production growth: 2.4%
• Average EUR/USD exchange rate: €1 = $1.20
• Average Brent crude oil price: $65 per barrel