The German chemical industry experienced a downturn in the fourth quarter 2011 instead of the expected trend reversal. According to the current report on the situation by the Verband der Chemischen Industrie e. V. (VCI; German chemical industry association) the output and sales again dropped in relation to the previous three months.The demand for chemical products continued to decline towards the end of the year. In response companies were running production plants at a lower gear.

Although the production of chemicals continuously decreased since May 2011, Germany’s third largest industry sector achieved record sales for 2011 as a whole.

The VCI’s director-general, Dr. Utz Tillmann, explained that “the braking effect of the debt crisis in the European Union became increasingly obvious in 2011. However, we seem to have reached the bottom of the trough now, the business situation in the chemical industry is getting brighter. We assume that upward forces will prevail in the coming months.”

^{Image: Chemical Production in Germany © VCI}

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• Verband der Chemischen Industrie e. V. (VCI; German chemical industry association), Frankfurt, Germany