German chemical industry gets Iran war boost

Germany's struggling chemical industry has received an unexpected boost from the war in Iran, benefiting from stockpiling by industrial customers concerned about supply disruptions. 

Production and sales in the chemical sector each rose 2% in the first quarter compared to the final quarter of 2025, industry association VCI said on Friday.

Revenue increased across all segments, including basic and speciality chemicals, petrochemicals and personal care products.

"Additional orders at the beginning of the year partly point to precautionary purchases and inventory building in response to the escalation in the Gulf," the association said.

Overall, seasonally adjusted sales in Germany's chemicals and pharmaceuticals segment rose 2.1% quarter-on-quarter to nearly €51 billion ($59.4 billion), while plant utilization increased from low levels.

VCI director general Wolfgang Grosse Entrup cautioned, however, that the figures do not signal a lasting recovery for Germany's third-largest industrial sector after automotive manufacturing and mechanical engineering.

Chemical industry production and sales remain far below year-earlier levels, while the pharmaceutical segment has weakened after benefiting in 2025 from front-loading effects related to the tariff dispute with the United States.

"We are not seeing a mood of optimism, but geopolitical hoarding," Grosse Entrup said. "This is a panic-driven temporary peak from which parts of the chemical industry are benefiting in the short term."

The association expects overall industry production to decline this year.