year. This decline could not be offset by the rebounding Japanese economy (+ 0.6 % after stagnating the previous year). The economic growth in India and in the largest economies of southeast Asia (ASEAN-5) kept up with that of the previous year, at 7.3 % and 4.7 %, respectively. Industry-Specific Framework Conditions According to estimates by the American Chemistry Council (ACC), global chemical manufacture rose by 2.8 % in 2015, an increase that was slightly lower than the strong growth in the previous year (3.0 %). As a result, chemi- cal manufacture tended to develop on a par with the global economic performance. However, the regional shifts in chemical manufacture do not reflect the general economic development of the respective region in all of the countries. In 2015, Germany, Europe’s largest chemical manufacturer, showed a slight decrease in chemical production of 0.5 % (excluding pharma- ceuticals), according to estimates by the German Chemical Industry Association. Due to lower prices, sales in the industry continued to decrease. On account of the positive economic development in the southern European countries, chemical manufacture increased in France, Italy, and Spain. The American Chemistry Council estimates that chemi- cal manufacture in the U.S. grew by 3.6 % in 2015. Due to declining manufacture in China, the Asian chemical sector is expected to post significantly lower growth than in the previous year (3.3 % compared to 5.2 %). The American Chemistry Council estimates that chemical production in China grew by 6.5 % in 2015, versus 8.6% in the previous year. In Japan, production even fell slightly. Compared to the previous year, a 1.1 % decrease is expected. The price of crude oil decreased substantially in the second half of 2015. In the first months of the year, the price of a barrel of Brent Crude remained relatively stable, hovering around 60 U.S. Dollars. Starting in July, the price fell steadily, closing the year at just under 40 U.S. Dollars. Important Events for Business Development ALTANA’s earnings and financial situation as well as its assets in 2015 were influenced by non-operating effects. At the end of 2014, we acquired two companies in Brazil. Their integration into the ACTEGA division affected the comparison with the previous year. The expansion of ALTANA’s non-controlling interest in Landa Corp., Rehovot, Israel, influenced the balance sheet figures on December 31, 2015, as well as the income statement for the reporting period. In 2015, the development of the exchange rates be- tween the Euro, our Group currency, and other curren- cies important for ALTANA had a significant impact on sales and earnings development. In the course of the year, the value of the Euro against the U.S. Dollar decreased significantly. The average exchange rate fell from 1.33 U.S. Dol- lars for one Euro in 2014 to 1.11 U.S. Dollars for one Euro last year. The relationship between the Euro and the Chinese Renminbi followed a similar path, with the average exchange rate decreasing from 8.19 Renminbis for one Euro to 6.97 Renminbis for one Euro. The development of these two currencies had very positive effects on the transla- tion of the items in the income statement. The Euro also lost ground to the Japanese Yen and the Indian Rupie, but the resulting influences were not as strong. The change of the Euro - U.S. Dollar exchange rate from the balance-sheet date at the end of 2014 to that at the end of 2015 also had a strong effect on the consoli- dated balance sheet. This was due to the translation of balance sheet items of U.S. Group companies to the Group currency, the Euro, at different exchange rates. The price of one Euro fell from 1.21 U.S. Dollars at the end of 2014 to 1.09 U.S. Dollars at the end of 2015. 42 Business Development
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