Bayer CropScience crop protection sales up 3% in Q1 2015

Bayer CropScience's crop protection sales recorded a 2.7% increase to €2,292 million in the first quarter of 2015. Seeds sales largely boosted by 18.7% to €597 million in this quarter.

Sales of Crop Protection / Seeds rose by 5.7% to €2,889 million. Fungicides business posted a 25.4% double-digit growth to €830 million. Sales of fungicide for use in cereals developed particularly well. Bayer achieved positive development in Seeds, particularly for oilseed rape/canola and soybeans. By contrast, sales were down at SeedGrowth, Insecticides and Herbicides compared with the strong prior-year quarter. Sales of Environmental Science advanced by 22.3% to €203 million. Both the consumer business and products for professional users developed positively.

Bayer CropScience sales increased by 6.6% to €3,092 million in the first quarter of 2015.Crop Protection/Seeds improved slightly against the strong prior-year level despite a weakened market environment, particularly in North and South America.Environmental Science raised sales against the prior-year period.

EBIT of CropScience receded by 11.5% in this quarter to €874 million. This figure reflected special charges of €47 million (Q1 2014: €0 million) that resulted mainly from the consolidation of production sites. EBIT before special items declined by 6.8% to €921 million. EBITDA before special items came in 5.3% below the strong prior-year quarter at €1,040 million (Q1 2014: €1,098 million).Contributing to this decrease was a negative currency effect of about €40 million. While higher selling prices had a positive effect, volumes were lower and selling expenses increased.

Regional sales ( currency-and portfolio-adjusted)

Sales in Europe rose by 16.9% at€1,378 million. Herbicides and Fungicides registered strong, double-digit growth. Sales at Insecticides were down against a strong prior-year quarter. Seeds and Environmental Science posted significant gains.

Sales in North America came in at €943 million in the first quarter of 2015, down 15.1% on a currency adjusted basis. Sharp declines in sales at Herbicides, particularly for products used in cotton or corn,and at SeedGrowth were only partially offset by the pleasing increase at Insecticides and the successful expansion of Seeds business, particularly for oilseed rape/canola, cotton and soybean seed.Environmental Science developed favorably as a whole. There was an overall sales decline in the United States, while business in Canada was on a par with the prior-year period.

Sales in the Asia/Pacific region receded by 4.3% to €360 million. This development was largely attributable to a decline in business in the Herbicides and Insecticides units. Environmental Science also registered a decline in sales. By contrast, business at SeedGrowth and Seeds expanded.

Sales in the Latin America / Africa / Middle East region receded by 3.2% to €411 million.The lower sales at Crop Protection/Seeds largely resulted from a decline in the Insecticides unit, particularly in Brazil, where sales were weakened by lower pest pressure. Herbicides sales and those of cotton seed were also down. The substantial growth of the Fungicides business and higher sales of vegetable seed were not sufficient to offset this trend. Bayer achieved a double-digit growth rate at Environmental Science.

Outlook

Bayer CropScience expects to continue growing faster than the market and now aims to raise sales to approximately €11 billion (previously: approximately €10 billion). This corresponds to a low- to midsingle- digit percentage increase on a currency- and portfolio-adjusted basis. Bayer anticipates positive currency effects of about 11% (previously: about 4%) compared with 2014. In line with the clearly positive currency changes, Bayer now plans to improve EBITDA before special items by a low- to mid-teens percentage (previously: a low- to mid-single-digit percentage).