Top 10 agchem firms obtained solid sales growth in 2012

Syngenta retained the number one position in the ranking list of 2012, with annual revenue $10.318 billion, being the only company which sales over $10 billion. However, it's worth mentioning that sales of Syngenta in 2011 given in their annual report have already exceeded $10 billion, but the company re-reported this data to $9.677 billion in their 2012 annual report after business restructuring. Syngenta posted increases in all product categories, and herbicides made double-digit growth in 2012. Sales in North and Latin America also got double-digit growth, however in Europe, Africa and Middle East and Asia Pacific, the sales were slipped by various extents owing to economic downturn as well as extreme weather.
 

Bayer CropScience posted 6.4% dollar-based sales increase to $9.535 billion in 2012, ranking number two in the list. Sales in euro terms of Crop Protection section rose both in product categories and all regions, especially the seed treatment business with sales up by 23%. The company pointed out that this growth was due largely to good business with new products.

Another German company, BASF, gained the minimum dollar-based growth rate among the companies on the list. The company increased sales in euros in all business sections and regions due to positive currency effects, higher sales prices and high demand for fungicides and herbicides.

Dow AgroSciences posted record pesticide sales of $5.041 billion in 2012 due to increased customer adoption of new crop protection products. Sales of pesticides rose by nearly 10% versus the previous year, accounting for 80% of total sales of Agricultural Sciences segment.

Monsanto reported 14.7% increase of their pesticide business in fiscal year 2012 ended August 31, 2012. The company revealed that the growth reflected strong performance from the company’s Roundup® (glyphosate), lawn-and-garden and selective herbicides businesses.

Driven by volume and pricing growth in North America and Latin America, sales of DuPont crop protection up by 9.4% to $3.2 billion in 2012. In addition, the company also stated that sales growth was also boosted by strong demand for insecticides and herbicides in all regions.

Makhteshim Agan (MAI) ranked seventh on the list, with sales reaching $2.65 billion in 2012. The company commented 2012 was a successful year for MAI with continued growth in all regions, and improvement in all financial indicators.

Nufarm gained 5% dollar-based sales increase in fiscal year 2012 ended July 31, 2012. Pricing and margins of glyphosate improved in some markets, including South America, but increased competitive pressure in Australia and Indonesia led to a fall in glyphosate profitability. Phenoxy herbicides were in strong demand in most markets and Nufarm’s leadership position in this segment helped facilitate both higher sales and an increase in margins.

As only Japanese company on the list, Sumitomo Chemical posted positive growth of 30% (dollar-based) to $1.96 billion in fiscal year 2012 ended March 31, 2013. The revenue was improved by continued sale increase of insecticides and herbicides, offset the effects of adverse currency exchange rate.

The number ten company, FMC, also archived significant sales growth of pesticide business with total revenue approaching $1.8 billion in 2012. Latin America was the biggest market of that year, the sales in this region accounted for 54% of total income. Insecticides were the major category, with sales accounting for half of overall revenue.