Swiss agribusiness company Syngenta AG (SYT) Thursday reported a 6 percent growth in sales for the first quarter, amid improvement in both divisions and growth across most geographies, despite cold weather.
Mike Mack, Chief Executive Officer, said, "Business momentum was sustained in the first quarter of 2013 despite adverse weather in March delaying northern hemisphere plantings...For the full year, we expect the impact of currencies and chemical raw materials to be broadly neutral and cost efficiencies to help offset lower licensing income and higher production costs in seeds.''
The firm expects to generate significant free cash flow and sales growth in line with the target for its eight key crops of $25 billion in 2020.
Group sales for the quarter advanced to $4.570 billion from $4.304 billion generated in the previous year. Sales grew 7 percent on a currency-neutral basis.
Business-wise, Crop protection sales climbed 10 percent to $3.125 billion. On a product-line basis, selective herbicides generated 11 percent higher revenues at $1.011 billion, while revenue from non-selective herbicides increased 29 percent to $302 million. Insecticides sales grew 4 percent to $480 million and seed care sales were 21 percent higher at $379 million.
Seeds business generated $1.282 billion in the quarter, up 5 percent from last year. Corn and soybean sales slid 1 percent to $700 million, while sales of diverse field crops climbed 16 percent to $415 million.
The company noted that integrated sales increased 8 percent at constant exchange rates, with 6 percent increase in volumes and 2 percent rise in prices.
Geographically, sales improved 10 percent in Europe, Africa and the Middle East to $1.936 billion, driven mainly by the CIS, amid expansion of the product portfolio and higher acreage expectations for spring crops.
Growth was also strong in South East Europe and France, where new fungicide launches and corn and cereal herbicides had a crucial role. However, sales in Italy and some northern European countries were lower due to cold wet weather.
Sales climbed 6 percent in North America to $1.341 billion. The region saw strong growth in crop protection with sales up 14 percent, despite a prolonged winter. Significant contributors were the corn herbicide Callisto and Vibrance seed care, a recent launch that achieved sales of over $50 million in the quarter.
Sales increased 14 percent in Latin America to $568 million, driven by Brazil, where fungicide sales increased more than 30 percent and sales of insecticides grew significantly owing to increased insect pressure in soybean and cotton.
Asia Pacific sales slid 1 percent to $525 million. The company noted that growth was concentrated in the emerging markets of ASEAN, which more than offset another difficult season due to weather in Australasia. Seeds continued their growth trajectory led by corn, with high demand for treated hybrids.
Lawn and Garden sales dropped 20 percent to $200 million, reflecting the impact of divestments that will significantly improve the profitability of the business. Excluding acquisitions and divestments, sales were unchanged. The stock fell 2.10 percent on Wednesday to close at 378.30 Swiss francs.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.