Since May 2003, BASF has been on a selling spree, leading to a 57% gain in the company's stock. Cash flow at BASF rose to more than 5 bln euros (US$6 bln) last year, providing the capital and borrowing capacity to fund the acquisitions. It seems that now the company is seeking to steady growth by turning to acquisitions.
The company now plans to move BASF into businesses with consistent earnings before the chemical industry enters its next cyclical decline. For this, BASF has plans to spend more than US$8 billion to buy Engelhard Corp., a U.S. maker of catalytic converters, and Degussa AG's construction chemicals unit. Cash flow at BASF rose to more than 5 billion euros ($6 billion) last year, providing the capital and borrowing capacity to fund the acquisitions. These acquisitions have to be understood as strategic investments to cushion against the next downturn in the chemical cycle
28-Feb-06 
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