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BASF raises full-year outlook after Q2 earnings growth and coatings divestiture
BASF has reported higher earnings across nearly all business segments in the second quarter of 2026, driven by stronger prices and volume growth. The German chemicals group has also raised its full-year EBITDA outlook and confirmed major progress on restructuring, including the completed sale of its Coatings business to Carlyle.
BASF has published its results for the second quarter and first half of 2026, reporting earnings growth in nearly all business segments. The group’s sales in Q2 2026 reached EUR 17.2 billion, EUR 2.4 billion above the prior-year period, driven by price increases of 11.5 % and volume growth of 7.3 %. EBITDA before special items improved by EUR 854 million year-on-year to EUR 2.4 billion. The results were pre-released on 15 July 2026, as the figure significantly exceeded average analyst expectations.
CEO Dr Markus Kamieth commented on the performance: “We further strengthened BASF’s position in the market and achieved major progress with our restructuring as well as portfolio measures.” The main contributors to the earnings increase were the Materials, Chemicals, and Industrial Solutions segments, where improved contribution margins drove results. The Surface Technologies segment recorded a significant earnings decline owing to higher fixed costs, while Agricultural Solutions and Nutrition & Care posted slight increases.
Coatings business sale and portfolio restructuring
A defining event of the reporting period was the completed sale of BASF’s Coatings business to Carlyle. The transaction generated a net cash inflow of EUR 5.6 billion and a disposal gain after taxes of EUR 3.5 billion. As a result, income after taxes for Q2 2026 rose significantly to EUR 4.2 billion, compared with EUR 108 million in the prior-year quarter. Net income for the quarter reached EUR 4.1 billion, against EUR 79 million in the same period of 2025.
For the first half of 2026, group sales totalled EUR 33.2 billion, up EUR 1.9 billion compared with the first half of 2025, with volumes rising 5.7 % and prices up 4.8 %. EBITDA before special items for the first six months improved by EUR 715 million to EUR 4.8 billion. Income after taxes for the half-year period reached EUR 5.1 billion, including the EUR 3.5 billion disposal gain from the Coatings divestiture.
Restructuring progress and workforce reduction
BASF reported significant advances in its “Winning Ways” strategy. Between January 2024 and the end of June 2026, the group reduced its global workforce by approximately 7,000 positions, excluding reductions related to divestitures and the workforce build-up at the Zhanjiang Verbund site.
Raised full-year 2026 outlook
In light of the better-than-expected business performance, BASF has raised its earnings outlook for the full year 2026. EBITDA before special items is now expected to be between EUR 6.9 billion and EUR 7.7 billion, compared with the previous forecast of EUR 6.2 billion to EUR 7.0 billion. The free cash flow forecast of between EUR 1.5 billion and EUR 2.3 billion remains unchanged, as does the CO₂ emissions target of between 17.2 million and 18.2 million metric tonnes.
