BASF, the world's biggest chemical company, posted profit that missed analyst estimates and said meeting annual targets looked more difficult than at the start of the year amid pressure on prices.

Earnings before interest, taxes and one-time items fell 5.4 per cent to €1.83 billion, the Germany-based company said yesterday. Shares fell the most in more than 2½ years’ trading.

Chief executive Kurt Bock, who is already cutting 940 jobs, said yesterday he saw potential for annual cost cuts to exceed €1 billion a year.

The company, which is shifting investment to Asia, pared its outlook for industrial and chemical production.

Oliver Schwarz, a chemical analyst at Warburg Research in Hamburg, said: “You can see in the BASF numbers that the outlook is becoming more difficult.” – Bloomberg