Our earnings development in the third quarter did not materially change compared to Q2, and we continue to see a mixed picture. We see signs that demand is weakening in some of our businesses. The building and construction markets remain down and plastics’ applications for luxury segments (like boats) are down as well. In general, our customers are more cautious and unpredictable in their ordering pattern. Alongside this, the supply/demand balance has improved for most product lines due to our own and competitor expansions as well as better availability of worldwide production capacities due to fewer interruptions this year. The deterioration in results compared to last year is most noticeable in Ethylene Amines, Performance Additives, Cross-linking Peroxides, Thermoset Chemicals and Polymer Additives and Chelates, and clear margin management actions are ongoing in all these segments. We see increased results in High Polymers, mainly due to further growth in the High Purity Metalorganics business. Margin management actions are ongoing in all these segments. Both Salt Specialties and Sulfur Derivatives are performing similarly to the previous year.
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