display
Baden-Baden (dpa / lsw) - Contrary to the development in the federal government and in other industries, the chemical industry in Baden-Württemberg closed the past year with a plus - thanks to Corona.
This is mainly due to a very high pharmaceutical content of 37 percent in the southwest, said the managing director of Chemie.BW, Ralf Müller, on Thursday in Baden-Baden.
The sales of the chemical and pharmaceutical industry in this country increased by 3.4 percent to 22.1 billion euros.
Nationwide, the industry posted a minus of 5 percent, said Müller.
Another advantage is a relatively more medium-sized structure in Baden-Württemberg.
"We are Germany's pharmacy," said Müller.
Every fourth pharmaceutical job nationwide is in Baden-Württemberg.
Doctors and pharmacies were already stocking up at the beginning of the pandemic.
Sick people got themselves medication, explained Müller.
Initially feared delivery bottlenecks did not materialize, added the spokesman for the chemical associations of Baden-Württemberg, Andreas Fehler.
The industry's business grew last year, especially domestically: by 7.3 percent to 8.8 billion euros.
At 0.9 percent, the increase in exports was significantly lower.
Sales of 13.3 billion euros were achieved here.
The second largest sub-sector, paints and varnishes for automobiles (12 percent share of sales), saw slumps in 2020.
Areas such as personal care, detergents and cleaning agents, however, could have maintained the pre-crisis level.
Employment remained almost constant with a decline of 0.5 percent.
display
For this year the industry is expecting production growth of up to two percent.
Sales could increase by two to three percent.
In a representative survey, companies across all sub-sectors were cautiously optimistic.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210211-99-396300 / 2
Economic situation in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry in Baden-Württemberg