International. Driven by rising prices and positive currency effects, chemical company Evonik's sales increased by 4% to €3,365 million in the third quarter, and by 6% to €10,309 million in the first nine months, supported by higher volumes.
Group EBITDA rose 31% to €653 million in the third quarter, so it remained at the high level reported in the previous quarters. In the first nine months, adjusted EBITDA increased 37% to €1,964 million. This was due to the continued good volume trend, partly as a result of new capacities, and higher selling prices.
The €1,329 million at the end of the first nine months of the year was already well above the cash flow of €1,066 million reported for 2014 as a whole.
At the group level, sales and adjusted EBITDA continued the strong performance seen in the first two quarters of the year. The worldwide demand for Evonik products was again good. However, volumes were slightly lower than in the third quarter of 2014 as a result of routine plant maintenance. There was a considerable increase in sales prices in the nutrition and personal care segment, while prices in the Performance Materials segment decreased, mainly due to the fall in the price of oil. Overall, selling prices were higher than in the previous quarter.
